


Why Do Fools Fall In Love?

by Wasitadream



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Fluff to begin with, Not really sure yet, just cute awkwardness for now, maybe more later - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-28
Updated: 2017-08-07
Packaged: 2018-02-22 22:58:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 31,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2524808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wasitadream/pseuds/Wasitadream
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Beth promised her best friend Nicki that she'd go out to a Halloween party, when all she really wanted to do was stay at home and relax. That night she ended up meeting Captain America himself, Steve Rogers. Will she end up thankful for going out that night, or will she regret ever leaving the house?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Beth groaned as she finally finished her shift, ready to go home and get out of her shoes, more than anything to just relax. She was just about to leave the lab when her phone rang. As soon as she heard Anaconda ringtone she cringed, she'd forgotten about her promise to go out to a Halloween party with Nicole.

"Hello." Beth didn't try to hide the exhaustion in her voice.

"Oh no no. You promised me. You can't back out on me now, please tell me you're not backing out!" Beth rolled her shoulders before she started shutting off lights.

"I know, I know I promised, and I will be there. I just might be late." As she stepped out of the lab and locked up she hoped that would pacify her dear friend, but she knew in reality that is wasn't going to happen.

"No, you're not going home to take a quick nap. You don't take quick or little or tiny naps. You will go home and pass out for the entire evening. Look I know you work hard, and that my friend is why you deserve a night out. I will meet you at your place and we will get ready together, alright?" Beth sighed, of course she wasn't going to win this argument, and Nicole was right, if she went to sleep her eyes wouldn't open until the following morning.

"Fine. I'm leaving the office now, so I'll see you there." Beth locked up and left, finding it was already dark outside as she hailed a cab, knowing she didn't want to risk taking the train this late.

As she arrived home she found Nicole already inside getting ready. They had agreed to go as nurses, but after seeing Nicole, Beth started to have doubts.

"So, you're not looking very nurse like there Nicki?" The dark-haired beauty just laughed as she shrugged.

"Okay, so a little change in plans. You're still a nurse, just a world war two era nurse. Me on the other hand, I'm going as a pin-up girl. You know, like the ones guys used to paint on the side of their planes." Beth couldn't help but laugh, Nicki was the type who never really made up her mind until the last-minute.

"Alright, but do you expect me to do my hair like yours? I mean I don't do much outside of down, ponytail, messy bun and just woke up remember." Nicki smiled as she finished her mascara, knowing her best friend had gotten into a comfort zone and was unwilling to leave it.

"I know, that's why I'm here sweety. I'll get your hair done while you do your makeup, if possible, then we will dress and away we will go." She pulled Beth into the bathroom, setting her down as she started getting her hair ready for victory rolls. Beth caved in, letting Nicki doing her hair while she attempted to do her makeup.

"Where is this party exactly?" Nicki only smiled as she kept doing Beth's hair, taking her time to get it just right. Beth stopped doing her makeup as she looked at her friend, knowing her well enough to know that it was at O'Malleys, a pub that the two had been going to since they were still in high school with fake I.D.s. "We're going to O'Malleys?"

"Yes. Shut up. Look you know that guy Sam I've been crushing on? Well he's going to be there tonight and I thought you know, if I was there then I'd have a chance at being seen." Beth couldn't really stay mad at her, knowing Nicki had been really liking this Sam for months now and he'd yet to ask her out, even though the two flirted like no other.

"You could have told me it was about Sam. You really like him don't you? He's seems like a great guy, what I've heard of him, and you should go for it. What's the worst that can happen, he turn you down. So what, we'll drink, eat some gelato and cry. Then we find you Mr. Right, not Mr. Right Now. Sound good." Nicole looked at Beth, small smile on her lips as she nodded.

"You think there is a Mr. Right for me?" Beth knew this whole thought of finding Mr. Right stemmed from Nicki's ex-fiance leaving her just weeks before their wedding. After Victor left two years ago Nicki had a string of one night stands and week-long relationships but now, she was ready to try to have a real relationship once again and Beth was going to do all she could to help her friend find that person who made her happy.

Soon the two girls were dressed up and ready to go, taking a cab in the damp night air. The cab ride was short and as they arrived at the pub Beth could feel her body relax, it was nice to get out for once. They walked inside and it only took Nicki seconds to pull Beth to the bar so she could do a shot of liquid courage. The two girls threw back two shots each and Beth watched as Nicki scanned the room.

"There he is. Other side of the bar, oh shit he just waved. Act natural he's coming over." Beth found it adorable how her friend seemed to freak out like a junior high school girl over this guy. Soon a tall handsome guy was standing next them and Beth could see Nicki was nervous.

"Hello Nicole, Nicole's friend." Beth elbowed Nicole slightly before holding her hand out to Sam.

"Hi, I'm Beth. It's nice to meet you, Sam right?" He shook her hand and smiled as he nodded.

"I guess you've heard of me." Beth laughed as the slight worried look in his eyes and she gave him a grimace before laughing again.

"All good things I promise. And while Nicki is unable to talk at the moment, I just want to say Thank you not only for your service to the country, but with more recent matters." He scowled slightly as he took a step closer to her.

"What do you know about more recent matters?" He asked in a deep husky whisper and Beth never once broke eye contact with him.

"I'm a technologies specialist with Stark Industries, my boss and I have spoken about it." Sam could tell she was being truthful, and he took a step back before his smile returned. He joked with the two for a minute before asking Nicki to dance.

Beth turned around and faced the bar, ordering a drink as she thought about the conversation she and Mr. Stark had about the safety of anyone who attempted to go up against Hydra. That was her job after all, design and development of safer weapons and defense systems. That was when she noticed him, a familiar face in the crowded bar. He was tall with sandy blond hair and those blue eyes that could pierce you from across the room. He turned and their eyes met, a slow smile formed on her lips as she raised her glass to him followed by a shy, almost innocent smile crossing his lips. The two shared looks across the bar for several minutes, a quiet conversation shared in glances and smirks.

Beth looked up again, this time thought he wasn't there and she looked back down to the whiskey and coke she was nursing thinking perhaps he'd left. She picked up her drink and took a long sip, mentally kicking herself for not going over to at least say hello.

"Two of what she's having please." The voice was gentle but formidable as she smiled, preparing to turn down whatever creep was standing next to her until she turned and looked up into those blue eyes.

"Oh, hello. I thought you had left." he smiled as the bartender brought the drinks over and he slid a few bills across the bar.

"I only thought no gal as beautiful as yourself should be drinking alone." He watched as her smile turned shy as she faced him, bringing her glass up in front of her.

"Well then, here is to no longer drinking alone thanks to a real hero." He raised his glass to hers before taking a drink and wincing at the taste. Beth couldn't stop herself from giggling, having to wipe her mouth from some of her drink.

"Sorry, it's whiskey and coke, not just soda." He nodded as he sat his glass down, his cheeks turning a slight tinge of pink as he looked at her.

"I, um, I just wasn't expecting something so strong. Not that girls can't drink strong drinks, it's just that where I'm from it's not that common. Not that there's anything wrong with it, I'm not saying that. I just wa," He didn't finish as she barely touched his arm, talking softly to him.

"Look, it's fine, I took no offence. Really. I do know who you are, and what you've been through and I want to say thank you, for what you do. Look I know that it has to be hard living a normal life, especially now so that is the last I'll bring it up. From this point forward, you're just that cute guy from across the bar. I'm Beth by the way." Steve smiled as he looked into her eyes, something about them seemed unpretentious and so comfortable.

"I'm Steve, it's nice to meet you Beth." She smirked as she took a sip of her drink, looking around as to check on Nicki who was still dancing with Sam. She assumed that Steve and Sam would have came together, but she asked him anyway, hoping it would help him relax.

"So Steve, are you here alone? To be honest you really don't seem like the bar type." He shook his head as he took a sip, glancing over at Sam to make sure he was having a good time.

"No. A friend of mine asked me to come out, even though it looks like he's not having any problems talking to the girl he's carrying a torch for." She laughed as she nodded raising her glass again.

"Looks like your not the only wingman to be left behind tonight. My friend dragged me here for the same reason, but here I sit alone, well not anymore thanks to you." Steve smiled at the reference, something he understood.

"So Beth, what is it that you do?" She had been waiting on that question, hoping her answer wasn't going to push him away.

"Actually I work for Stark Industries. I'm a technologies developer in his defense department." He could tell by her tone that she wasn't wanting to talk business, but he couldn't understand why, unless it was something Tony was hiding. He decided to step around the subject lightly, not asking her about it directly.

"Mr. Stark seems like a good man, a bit wild, but all in all a good man." Beth couldn't help but laugh at Steve's mild judgement of her boss, after all Tony Stark didn't hide who he was.

"Wild is an understatement. Mr. Stark is arrogant, eccentric, egotistical and rude, but with that being said his heart, or lack there of, is in the right place. He wants to correct any mistakes made by his family. Plus I think Ms. Potts keeps him on a short leash." Steve liked how she was able to speak her honest opinion of her boss.

"Do you enjoy the work you do?" She took a long sip this time, nodding before she began speaking.

"I do. Knowing what I do will hopefully make a difference, save some lives, it's rewarding. The hours are long and sometimes it sucks but the payoff is well worth it. A very wise and attractive man once said 'The price of Freedom is high and it's a price I'm willing to pay.' I think to myself that one day the projects I'm working on will hopefully drop the price of freedom, keeping some of the bravest men and women on this earth a little longer." A slow smile spread across his lips again as he leaned closer.

"If you can do that, then I'll stand by your side and offer you any help I can." As she sat her glass down and looked into his eyes she licked her lips slowly, thinking to herself that she'd like to know what his lips would feel like pressed against hers. He took notice of how her tongue slid across her lips and he cleared his throat before taking another drink.

"So, what do you do for fun Steve?" He sat his glass down and he pulled out a small notebook from his pocket, opening it up and showing it to her.

"I try to catch up on things I missed out on." Beth looked over his list and giggled, reaching for his pen but asking permission first.

"May I?" He nodded to her and she added a few movies to his list, including Goonies. She then slid his notebook back to him as she smiled up at him. "If you ever want to catch up but don't feel like doing it alone, I'd be happy to join you, plus I've got tons of movies you could borrow if ever you want." He couldn't help but feel so drawn to her, like he should know her somehow, but he pushed that feeling aside as Sam walked over.

"OH, Steve I see you've met Beth." She tilted her head as Sam whispered to Steve, seeing the look on his face change. Sam then patted his chest before turning around to say goodbye to Nicki, kissing her softly before he headed to the door. Steve looked down at Beth, hating that at this moment his duty to his country was calling him.

"I have to go, I'm really sorry but I'd like to see you again sometime." He was just about to ask for her number but Sam popped his head back in the door and called his name out over the crowd. Steve quickly leaned down, kissing Beth's cheek softly before pulling away and rushing out the door, glancing back at her from outside one last time before he disappeared with Sam.


	2. Chapter 2

It was Halloween night, one week since Beth had met Steve Rogers and one week with no word from him. She was beginning to think he wasn't as interested as she was, maybe he was just being kind. Of course he never did ask for her number, that should have been a clue right then. If he was interested he could have Sam get her number from Nicki, those two had seen each other at least four times during that week. Either way she decided to toss those feelings out for him and go on with her life. She got home early for once and decided she'd watch a couple movies while passing out Halloween candy, that was when she remembered she hadn't pick up any candy yet.

She ran out to corner store and made her way down the candy isle, inwardly cursing for waiting so late because the only bags of candy they had left where humoungus with a price tag to match. She grabbed two anyway and stopped by the hair care isle to grab some shampoo before heading to the check out. Before she could reach the front she heard her name and she turned to see Steve standing there with a bag of candy in his hand too.

"Beth. I never thought I'd see you here." She blushed as he took a step closer, his smile looking so nervous causing all those feelings to come flooding back. The thoughts she had about him during the week came back too as he had on an incredibly fit sweater on.

"Well, I only live just around the corner." She shifted her items in her arms and he reached to help her.

"Me too. Which direction are you? Let me hold those for you. Here I am making you stand here and talk while you're loaded down. So, you forgot candy for the kiddos too?" She nodded as admired his blue eyes.

"Yea, I'm just two doors up the hill. If your not doing anything you could come over and watch one of those movies." He looked down at the candy in his arms, and she couldn't tell if he just wanted to say no or if he was really scared of saying yes. "If you've got plans, or its just too weird I get it." He looked up at her, shaking his head as he tried to think of the right thing to say.

"No, I'd like that. It's just hard for me sometimes, to get used to this." She took her candy from his arms and started heading towards the front.

"Well come on then slow poke, we need to get back before the kiddos come out." He smiled as he rushed to her side, and as they got to the register she just looked at him, waiting on him to put his bag of candy on the check out counter. He did then proceeded to pay for everything and Beth dropped her head back as she groaned. Steve then realized she didn't want him to pay for everything and he panicked as he picked up their bags.

"I'm sorry, I just thought that since you were inviting me over that maybe I should pay, after all I'm going to be at your place watching your movies so the least I can do is pay for the candy." she just laughed as she slid her arm around his, escorting him out the door.

"I know, but I guess I should have said something too. Look, you paid for candy I'll pay for dinner, if you haven't eaten yet. We can order some delivery and munch while we watch." Steve was slightly tense as they started walking, but soon she could feel him relax next to her.

"I haven't eaten yet, so that sounds like a deal." As they got to her building he rushed to open the door for her and she couldn't help but smile as she walked past him. Soon they had made their way up to her apartment where she walked in and kicked off her shoes.

"So, what sounds good for dinner?" She pulled her hoodie off and tossed in on the back of the armchair before she disappeared into the kitchen to grab a giant bowl to put the candy in. When she came back out Steve was still standing inside the door with the bags in his hands. "Make yourself at home Steve." She walked over and took the bags from his hands, putting them down on the armchair so she could pull out one of the bags of candy. She dumped the candy into the bowl and set it next to the front door on her entry table.

Steve was sitting on the edge of the sofa, not sure what do do with himself as he waited on Beth. She buzzed around the living room as she grabbed some take out menus and handed them to Steve before opening the door for some trick or treaters. She handed out some candy before she sat next to him on the sofa, smiling at him as he looked over the options. He just sort of looked through them again before she took them all from him and laid them out on the table.

"I'm sorry, I just have no clue. I normally cook." She smiled as she took his hand, curling his fingers in except his index finger and she smiled as she moved his arm our over the table.

"Close your eyes and pick." He laughed but that soon faded to a smiled as he found she wasn't joking. He then closed his eyes and moved his hand back and forth a few times before landing his finger on one menu when someone knocked on the door. "I'll call and order, it's your turn to pass out candy." He just smiled as he stood up and headed towards the door, looking back to see her dialing what ever take out place he'd inadvertently chosen. He then opened the door and started to hand out candy when one little boy just stood there staring up at him dressed in his costume. After a full 15 seconds of silence the boy whispered.

"Your Captain America." Steve knelt down and looked around before putting his finger on his lips before whispering back to the little Captain.

"This is a top secret location, no telling anyone alright. Hydra could be watching." The little boy pretended to lock his lips before saluting Steve and rushing off to catch up with his friends down the hall. As he turned around Beth was hanging up and sitting back down on the sofa.

"So, we ordered Thai. I just got a bunch of everything in case there is something you want to try. Is that alright?" Steve nodded and Beth turned on the television and started a movie while they waited. As the credits ran Steve told her about the little boy and she thought maybe it would be better if she passed out the candy, not wanting to give anyone the impression that Steve lived there.

The movie started and Steve settled back on the sofa as Forest Gump began to play. Steve was enthralled in the movie as Beth would get up to pass out candy, and when their food arrived he paused it for her. She put everything out on the coffee table and Steve was shocked to see so much food, she then grabbed two forks and a couple bottles of water before joining him on the sofa. She explained to him what each of the dishes were and soon they were in the floor, watching the movie and eating away.

The trick or treaters had died down and the food was cleaned up by the time the movie ended and Steve just sat there for a moment to process what he'd just seen.

"So, this sort of explained a lot of things really. I mean that movie just explained so many key points in modern history." She giggled as she sat down next to him now back on the sofa.

"Yea, that's why I picked it. I mean it's a movie, but it ties together so many things so nicely. I'm glad you liked it." He nodded as she picked up her phone and started playing some music, smiling as she picked her 50's playlist. "So, I would like to help you get through the era's of music, because I'm sure hearing modern music was shocking when you first heard it, right?"

"That's an understatement. So you really want to help me catch up don't you?" He found it extremely cute how she shrugged and blushed, he also found that it made him feel more and more like he should already know her.

"Well yea, but also because I sort of have love for history. My grandparents raised me, and I guess just from growing up and listening to their stories I fell in love with how life used to be. So helping you catch up is sort of my way of passing the knowledge they gave me forward." The song changed and as the Chubby Checkers started playing The Twist she jumped up to her feet and moved the coffee table. Steve got up and stood there looking at her with a scared look on his face. "Come on, shoes off." He kicked his shoes off and stood there watching her.

"Alright Steve, this was a huge dance craze at the end of the 50s, it's called the twist and as the song says, it goes like this." She bent her knees and twisted her body back and forth at her waist, waiting until Steve joined her. Once he had found his rhythm Beth moved to one foot before twisting her way to the other and Steve laughed as he watched her.

"This was a dance craze? The fact that I'm doing this says it's not really dancing." She laughed as she moved slightly in front of him taking his arms and pushing him to twist just a bit more as he moved.

"Oh come on, you've got rhythm so you can dance. Just keep going." He kept twisting away and Chantilly lace came on and Beth started singing along like her grandfather would to her.

"Chantilly lace and a pretty face, and a pony tail hanging down. That wiggle in the walk and that giggle in the talk, Makes the world go round. There ain't nothing in the world like a big eyed girl, that makes me act so funny, make me spend my money, make me feel real loose like a long neck goose. Like a girl, Oh baby that's what I like." Beth couldn't keep up with Steve now and she stopped, laughing because her sides hurt from twisting so much. They talked and listened to songs like The Great Pretender, Lucille, Jambalaya, Blue in Green and Rock around the Clock before Earth Angel come one.

"Oh this is one of my favorites. There were so many of these love songs that we just don't have anymore." He watched as she closed her eyes and swayed her head back and forth, her fingers lightly tapping to the beat on her leg.

"Beth, may I have this dance?" He stood up and turned to hold a hand out to her and Beth slowly slid her hand into his. She stood up and he timidly put his hand on her waist as her fingers glided up his arm. They started swaying to the music, neither one really sure what to say, but both enjoying their moment together. As that song ended In the Still of the Night came on and Beth moved slowly closer, her arm moving around to the back of his shoulder as her temple gently touched his jaw line. His hand slowly traveled to a more comfortable spot on her back holding her close as a smirk crossed her lips. He was such a gentleman. She could feel his heart racing through his chest and Steve turned his head slightly, breathing her in. She wanted to badly for this to last all night, or for more to happen.

The song ended and Beth slowly pulled back far enough to look up into his eyes, her lips slightly parted as she desperately wanted him to lean down and kiss her. He stared deep into her eyes before he let her go and turned to pick up his shoes.

"It must be late, I should get going." Beth glanced as the clock, nodding as she sat down on the sofa.

"Yea its just after midnight." Steve jumped as he pulled his shoes on, apologizing while he moved the coffee table back for her.

"Oh I am so sorry. I never should have kept you up so late. And your neighbors, what are they going to think?" She giggled as she followed him to the door, smiling up at him as he moved to the hallway.

"Steve, relax. There are worse things my neighbors could think than I'm seeing with a handsome man like you." He stopped as he saw the smirk on her lips.

"I'm doing it aren't' I? Sam always tells me I have to stop living in the past and that is what I'm doing isn't it? Treating this like I would have in '44." Beth leaned on her door frame as she gave him a soft genuine smile.

"Steve, don't change who you are just because times have changed. You just do what feels natural to you. That's what makes you a great guy." He smiled as he nodded to her, taking a step back.

"Alright. We should do this again. The fifties were good." Beth nodded, thinking they were good indeed.

"Absolutely. And the sixties are even better. You know where to find me. Goodnight Steve."

"Goodnight Beth." He turned and made his way out to the sidewalk, smiling the whole way as she did the same from behind her closed door.


	3. Chapter 3

Steve and Beth ran into each other twice the week following Halloween, but as Friday night drew close he found himself with Sam and Nick Fury making plans to take down one of Hydra's base of operations. He hated to think he had to make that phone call, never even considering texting her as Sam had mentioned, no this had to be done in a more personal way.

"Sam, we're making a quick stop before heading out." Sam just turned and looked at him, shaking his head.

"What? Why?" Steve smirked as he gave Maria directions, Maria nodding even though she didn't like the thought of Steve dropping by to check on his girlfriend, but she was to take his orders. Sam heard where they were stopping and he started on Steve. "Man, are you serious? We're stopping by so you can break your date with Beth? Cap man text her. Do you think I was free tonight? No, I had to text Nicole and tell her I'd owe her because work came up. And you know what Cap, she said that's fine bae, be safe. This is the digital age, just text her."

As Sam had been blasting at Steve, Maria had landed the helicopter on top of Beth's building and Steve slid the door opened and jumped to the roof before turning and smiling at Sam.

"Somethings have to be done in person." He then tapped on Maria's window, holding his hand up fingers spread, 5 minutes. He then took off towards the access door from the stairs, pulling it open, although it was latched in side, and rushing down the stairs. He got to Beth's door in just under 45 seconds and when he knocked on the door he took a deep cleansing breath. He waited and as he stood there he could hear Beth talking as she came to the door, her voice was muffled at first, but as she got to the door he could make it out a little more clearly.

"..hell is going on, sounds like someone is ripping the roof off. I didn't think it was going to storm. Whew, alright now be cool." She swung open the door and her smile faded once she saw him standing there. "Would you like to come in?" He took a step into her apartment and she closed her door before looking up at his with her head tilted to the side.

"You look lovely." Beth smiled as she shook her head at him.

"You had a helicopter drop you off?" She could see him shift uncomfortably and she corrected herself. "No, You are stopping by just say you can't make it. Steve, you could have called or sent a text." His gaze saddened slightly and she took a step closer to him, her hand taking his softly. "But thank you, it is by far the most, unique maybe even romantic way I've ever been ditched. It's dangerous right?" He was looking at her hand in his, his fingers gently wrapping around hers.

"I'll be fine." She gripped his hand tighter, looking up at him until his eyes met hers then she pulled his hand behind her, putting it on the small of her back, her hand trapped between his and her body while her other hand touched his neck and she got up on her tip toes to kiss the corner of his mouth. As she pulled away their eyes locked and time stood still as they looked at each other.

"Stay safe, and come back because you owe me the sixties." the left side of his mouth turned up with a half-smile and he pressed his lips to her forehead before letting her go.

"I promise you I will be back." He opened the door and Beth watched him as he walked down the hall, smiling as she took in his behind in his Captain suit. She closed the door and pressed her back against it, she really liked this Steve guy.

As he reappeared on the roof he rushed over and jumped in the helicopter, sliding the door close before tapping Maria on the shoulder. She started back on their path and Sam looked him over, able to see that smile he had.

"I take it Beth was alright with you having things to do?" Steve's smile spread as he nodded to Sam. This his expression changed, he focused at the task at hand and put himself into Captain mode.

Beth sat and waited by the phone all weekend, but she hadn't heard from Steve. She called Nicki only to find out she hadn't heard from Sam either and both girls began to worry. By Tuesday afternoon Beth was a wreck and when Tony Stark walked into her lab unexpected she really started to lose control.

"Mr. Stark, I wasn't expecting you. What can I do for you?" She turned to head back to where she was working and ended up knocking over a sterile tray full of ballistics. As she dropped to her knee to start picking them up Tony walked over and began helping her, trying to joke as he did so.

"Oh, no hey it's alright. Aren't these the bullets I just nearly half a million dollars developing." He looked up to see Beth sitting back on her ankles, tears rolling down her cheeks and he panicked, calling for help. "No, no no. I'm not good with crying. Please, I didn't mean it. I brake shit all the time, ask Pepper. I'm not allowed in her office anymore." Seeing her boss uncomfortable was a little amusing to Beth and her tears subsided as she slowly gathered the ballistics together.

"Mr. Stark it's not what you said. I know that this is classified or whatever, but please can you tell me if Steve Rogers is alright?" He scowled as he looked her over, slowly standing as she did the same.

"UM. I really don't know. I haven't talked to anyone since Shield disbanded. What do you know?" Beth could tell by his tone that he was put off that Steve could be involved in something and he wasn't invited.

"Nothing really. He showed up at my door Friday evening to break our date in his uniform and I haven't heard from him since." Tony looked her in the eye, studying her and he shrugged.

"Nope. I haven't heard anything. I'm sure he's fine. Look, why don't you go home early today and tomorrow you can show me what you've been working on." She looked around, shaking her head.

"No. I'm fine. I can show you right now. That bullet in your hand, smart anti ballistic bullet. I'd love to show you a demonstration." Tony looked at the bullet carefully before nodding to her.

"Show me." As she walked out and down the hall with Tony next to her she explained how she came up with the concept with him.

"I thought if we could develop heat seeking missiles, missile that in theory can take out other missiles, why not with bullets." They got to a room and stood outside the bullet proof glass window as she started her demonstration. "In the far corner of the room you'll see a fully automatic AK-47. It is loaded with normal rounds that are easily accessible. Located just in front of the window here is one of your guns sir loaded with these specially designed AB rounds. Now imagine that AK-47 is being held by a threat and in between it and us are dozens of civilians. All we do is fire our gun in the air. She pressed a few buttons and the guns sprang to life, both firing off rounds quickly for nearly 15 seconds. After the firing was done they both walked into the room and Tony was shocked to find the ground littered with bullets fused to other bullets, as if they had collided in mid-air. He picked up one of the round and Beth cleared her throat behind him. The walls had been lined with foam board and from the dozens of bullets fired, only two had lodged into the wall.

Tony took a moment to look around, his mouth slightly hung open as he realized she could have just created something that could potentially save hundreds of lives. He put the bullet in his pocket as he walked towards her.

"Can this work in the real world, with people around?" She took in a deep breath.

"Testing has shown great potential but I need just a little more testing. I've been using test dummies molded from ballistics gel that radiated the normal 98.6 human body temperature with great results, but unfortunately if the temperature is in the 99 and up range the error rate triples and I cannot accept that. I'm in the process of tweaking the formula to get the highest life to death ratio possible." Tony patted her shoulder as he took one more sweeping look of the room.

"That's great. You've done great work here. Really, it's just, wow. You keep this up and I'll make sure Pepper writes you a fat bonus check. You deserve it." With that Tony Stark left the room and Beth smiled to herself before walking out, happy that she may have actually impressed Tony Stark.

For two hours Beth sat in her lab typing and testing away until she decided it was time to head home. Once again her mood fell, afraid that something bad had befallen upon her blue-eyed hero. She took a cab home and ordered in some take away before she slipped into her sweats and a t-shirt and planting herself on the sofa. After twenty minutes there was a knock at the door and she hopped up assuming it was her delivery until she opened the door to find her boss.

"See, here's the thing. How do you know he's out on some sort of mission? You said he was in uniform, well why would he be in that unless he was working with someone trying to take down Hydra or whatever threat has threatened uncle Sam." He walked into her apartment, speaking as he walked around the room.

"Mr. Stark, Please what do you want from me?" He stood there, his arms out from his sides as stretched his neck towards her.

"Who is he working with? That's all I want to know." She went to sit down, but again there was a knock at the door, this time it was her dinner that had arrived. She took her delivery and sat it on the coffee table before looking up at Tony.

"I don't know other than Sam Wilson." Tony nodded as he looked around the room then back to her.

"This apartment looks a little old-fashioned, you should bring it up to date. Look if you hear from him, let me know." With that he walked to her door, stopping to add in one more comment before leaving. "And see if you can't find out who's he's working with."

After he left Beth shut her eyes and leaned back in the seat. She was just asked to report back to Tony Stark anything she knew. Shaking her head she muttered under her breath, "Like hell" before she got up and started to get her dinner out. She sat and tried to eat, but now that Tony had her all upset she just put the food away and stowed it in the fridge. As she came back into the living room she curled up on the sofa, sleep overtaking her as the news flashed on the television.

Two hours later and Beth was woken up being covered with a blanket, a dark figure standing in front of her was covering her. Her heart was beating so fast she thought it might explode until she heard a voice speak quietly.

"Sleep well Beth, I guess I'll let you sleep. Steve's safe though and if you're dreaming about him, know he's home." Nicki tucked the blankets around her friends shoulders before turning off her television and slowly creeping out of the apartment. Once Beth heard the lock latch she smiled and let out sigh, Steve was safe at home, now she could rest easy.

 


	4. Chapter 4

Beth woke up Friday, happy she had put in extra hours through the week so that she could have the day off. She got up, showered and dressed before heading out for her important date that afternoon. First, she had pulled some photo albums out and put them in her bag before skipping down the stairs and making her way to the bakery two blocks up from her. After her quick stop there she rushed towards St. Magdalen's, happy to be the entire day with her grandfather.

She walked in the front door and Angela, a woman who's worked the receptionist desk at St. Magdalen's for years, smiled as she greeted her.

"Beth, I knew you'd be in today. Robert is always happy to see you, birthday or not. You know where he is." On her way by Beth dropped a small bag from the bakery on Angela's desk before walking through the stark white halls. She rounded a corner and slowed her steps, smiling as she saw her grandfather sitting alone behind an easel, painting the city's skyline outside the window he was seated in front of.

"Happy Birthday Grandpa." He turned and looked at Beth while a smile spread across his face slowly.

"Is it my birthday already? Where has the time gone?" She laughed as she sat down his little bakery box on the table next to him and he grinned as he looked around. "You know I'm not supposed to have these, especially not in the middle of the afternoon." Beth opened the box and pulled out one of the Pignolo cookies and ate it as she grinned at him.

"You know what I say to that, it's your birthday and these are your favorite, just like grandma used to make." He put down his paint brush and wiped his hands before he reached into the box and took a bite. He hummed happily as he savored the cookie, the flavor taking him back to when his late wife would make them fresh for him.

"I swear they stole her recipe, these are the only ones I've ever had that compare to hers." Beth finished her cookie before she sat down and pulled out a photo album from her bag.

"I brought you these too, thought maybe you could tell me some stories today." His eyes twinkled as he eyed the old blue album, something he hadn't seen in ages. "I've only glanced through this one, it was one of the ones from the attic. I don't think you've told me these stories." Once he realized what she had brought his looked changed to something more sad and serious.

"Can I see it?" She gave him the book and watched in wonder as his eyes misted over while he flipped through the pages.

"Grandpa what it is?" He nodded as he looked at one page, turning it so his granddaughter could see what he'd found.

"This is me in 1941, the year I was hired by Howard Stark, and this is something I've always been too ashamed to tell you. I worked on Project:Rebirth, and what we did to that poor boy, it breaks my heart. He was such good kid, a good heart and strong head on his shoulders it was just that he was this tinyant of person and Howard turned him into this ideal soldier. The Army used that boy as propaganda and I was never able to look at him the same." Beth watched as he grandfather got up and moved over to a small sofa on an adjoining wall and he motioned for her to sit next to him. He showed her several pictures of he had of many of the crew that had worked on the project, and she could feel the sense of guilt he had.

"That young man laid frozen for seventy years, and survived. Most people say that's a miracle but to me, when he woke up I couldn't imagine his horror to find how this world had moved on. It scares me most days and I lived it." He leaned over and pressed a kiss to Beth's temple and she smiled as he turned to the next page, reveling a photograph of her grandmother. "Ah, my sweetheart. I met her in '44 and I remember how hesitant she was. She'd lost someone in the war and it pained me to see her so sad. I worked day after day, stopping by her father's shop everyday and doing all that I could to get her to smile. It took me two weeks to see one, and boy when I did she became an angel. Did she ever tell you about our first date?" Beth leaned her head on her grandfather's shoulder, smiling as she thought about the story her grandmother had told her countless times before.

"You asked her to dinner every day for weeks until she finally caved and agreed to one date. She said she told you that you had to agree to not ask her again if things didn't work out and you promised. She then said it was the worse date she'd ever been on, you were so nervous that when you helped her into her chair at dinner you pushed it in too far and hurt her ribs, then when you realized what you had done you pulled it back out but ended up tipping her over." By that time Beth and her grandfather were both laughing and he finished the story.

"Yes, and it only got worse. I spilled a drink on her, was short on cash for the bill and when we left I closed her dress in the car door. As I walked her to her door I broke my promise, begging for a second chance. She said give me one reason and I said because she was the reason I was so nervous, she was the most beautiful woman I'd ever laid my eyes on and I thought for sure it was a dream, that no woman as smart or as funny as her would ever give a guy like me a chance at all, much less a second one. After that she told me to pick her up the following Friday at six and after that we were inseparable. She was my everything." He ran his fingers over the picture lovingly and then he smiled at Beth. "You look just like her here, like an angel smiling back at me." Beth smiled as she reached over and flipped the page, her eyes landing on a photo of her date for that evening.

"Did you know Steve Rogers well?" She was so afraid to tell her grandfather that she had started seeing Steve, not that they were officially dating, but he did ask her to dinner stating that he wanted to make up for cancelling their plans together. She watched as a sorrow filled smile cross his lips.

"He was such a good kid. Young but full of spirit and he was just a stand up type of guy. I remember Peggy was sweet on him, and it broke her heart when he went missing. That poor girl, I think she was waiting on him." Beth noted the brunette in the background of the photograph and she couldn't deny that she could see the admiration in the woman's eyes. It had never occurred to her that Steve may have had someone before the freeze, but now that it was staring her in the face she couldn't deny it.

She sat and listened to her grandfather go on for several hours, his stories not only bringing tears to their eyes but creating fits of hysterical laughing. Beth took his hand as Frita his nurse came to take him to dinner, and both women escorted him to the dining hall. He sat and Beth joined him, leading the way as they sang to him. After hewas brought over a piece of cake, he leaned to Beth, smiling as he spoke quietly.

"Where are you off to tonight? And don't lie to your granddad, I know you've got a date." She took a bite of cake before answering, smirking at him.

"I do. First date, so no details yet, but if it works out I'll let you meet him." Robert smiled, knowing the glimmer in Beth's eyes meant she had high hopes for whomever she'd be seeing that evening. His heart melted as he watched her, that was the same glimmer his wife had and he reached over and took her hand.

"Just tell me, is he at least a gentleman?" She chuckled with cake in her mouth, but she nodded as she finished her bite.

"More than I can ever say. A perfect gentleman I promise."

Beth finished celebrating with her grandfather before she rushed home to change. She was rushing around her apartment, pinning her hair up as she looked for her favorite heels, the ones that Nicki said made her legs look flawless, when there was a knock at the door. She panicked thinking she was late, so she rushed around the room looking everywhere for her shoes, giving up after a good thirty seconds and opening the door.

"Hey, I remembered your date tonight so I brought your heels back." Beth just laughed as she looked at Nicki.

"I've been rushing around here searching for these and you had them." Nicki followed Beth into her apartment after she sat the shoes down next to the door.

"Come on, let me fix your hair. It's starting to fall from you running around."

Nicki got Beth's hair fixed and left, knowing that Beth wouldn't want her there when Steve showed up for their first official date. With her friend gone, Beth sat down and took a second to breath, she didn't want to seem worked up or anxious when Steve arrived, even though her nerves were thrumming with anticipation. She had rehearsed part of what she was going to say, and now with the new information from her grandfather, there was more. When she heard the knock this time she smiled as she walked over and peeked out to see Steve standing there. She pulled the door open and looked up at him, his smile melted every single worry she had.

"I've just got to slip on my shoes and grab a jacket. Would you like to come in?" Steve nodded as he stepped inside and produced a single flower from behind him.

"I got you this. It's not real, but that just means it will never fade." She took the metal rose and looked it over, her eyes full of wonder.

"It's beautiful. Thank you." She crossed the room and place it gently onto the shelf above the television, pausing to look at it before she rushed down the hall to grab a jacket from her room. She came back and slid into her shoes before finally looking back up at Steve and the innocent look in her eyes broke her.

"Before we go, I just have to tell you this. My boss, Tony Stark, wants me to spy on you for him but I will not. I don't care if I lose my job, well I do care but it's worth it. And it's all my fault really. When you left and I hadn't heard from you I thought maybe you where busy with Captain America stuff but Nicki han't heard from Sam either and I started to worry more. So one day at work Mr. Stark showed up and he was checking on my work and I thought since you had worked together with S.H.I.E.L.D. before that maybe he knew where you were so I asked. He had no clue who you'd be working with because to his knowledge S.H.I.E.L.D. was no more and then he asked me what I knew. I only told him I knew you were working with Sam so that he wouldn't keep hounding me and I realized I never should have asked him in the first place and I'm so sorry I did. I totally understand if your angry or upset but I need to be upfront with you and please, please know I will never, never tell Tony Stark a damn thing."

As she finally took in a breath Steve took a moment to process what she had said. He looked at her blankly for a moment before he raised his hands up, resting them on her shoulders as he bent his knees and looked her in the eyes.

"Don't worry about Tony, I'll talk to him. He won't ask you anymore. Were you really worried about me?" Her cheeks turned a dark shade of crimson as her eyes dropped to the floor and her voice was barely a whisper in the quiet room.

"Extremely." Steve wasn't really sure what to do, he wanted to hug her, but that seemed a bittoo much so he slowly let his fingers slide down her arms, tickling her wrist before they slid into her hand.

"I was worried you'd be worried. But I'm sort of happy you were. I think that means you like me." She grinned before looking up at him.

"I do, maybe as much as you like me." He was left speechless as his cheeks became a tinge darker. He couldn't suppress his smile as he tried to think of something clever to say back, but when he opened his mouth clever didn't come out.

"How about we head to dinner now before I have a chance to screw things up." Beth couldn't help but laugh as she turned towards the door.

"Let's go, but for the record, I don't think you could ever screw things up."

They both walked side by side, Beth with her hands neatly folded in front of her and Steve with his hands shoved in his pockets. He led her out to a cab and soon they were on their way to a great little restaurant across town. The ride was quiet and once the arrived at the dinner Beth found herself opening up to him, telling him all about her grandparents and how he might actually know her grandfather.

Dinner seemed to go to fast and neither of them wanted the night to end, but with everything Steve had just heard, he found himself thinking of how she could help him even more than she had been. He took her home, but as he walked her to her door, he regretting not taking them out someplace else first.

"Beth, I had a really great night. I'd love to do this again, if you do." She smiled as she turned to face him as the arrived in front of her apartment.

"Would you like to come in for a cup of coffee?" He went through an internal fight with himself, he wanted to stay and talk to her for hours, but he hated to think what her neighbors would say about her having a man in her apartment this late in the evening. She could see his internal struggle and she softly touched his arm."Steve, it's alright if you don't. But I do most definitely want to see you again." He smiled as she took the pressure of him and he nodded.

"What are you doing Tuesday evening? There's something I think you could help me with." Beth's mind was too busy focused on trying not to jump for joy as she gave him a coy smile.

"I'm available. Tuesday it is."

"Alright, I will call you before hand to let you know if you need anything. Goodnight Beth." She took his hand and got up on her tips toes to press a soft kiss to his cheek.

"Goodnight Steve." With that she opened her door and went inside, peering at Steve who stood and watched until he heard her locks engage and only then did he leave because he felt she was safe. When he got outside he took in a deep breath, he might have just found the key to solving one of his problems.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long to post but personal matters kept me busy. I hope to be updating more frequently now.  
> Italicized text if a flashback.

Beth was anxious as she paced around the lab on Tuesday; first because she was going to see Steve that evening and second because Tony Stark was buzzing around the office. She hoped that Steve had gotten to talk to him, because she didn’t know what she would tell Mr. Stark if he asked about her relationship with Steve. She tried to keep herself busy, hoping that if she looked like she was doing research that Tony wouldn’t come in and bother her. She only had half an hour before she planned on clocking out for the day when Tony came bursting through her laboratory door in his usual fashion.  
“Miss Fredrick, how was your date with old stars and stripes?" He gave her his I'm trying to act innocent smile, but she just raised her brow at him.  
"How did you know I had a date with Steve?" She stood with her hip out and arms crossed while Tony looked away as he spoke quickly.  
"Well, you see, I was just trying to look out for your well being." Beth was furious now as she took a step towards him.  
"You’ve been following me? That is totally out of line Mr. Stark. Completely and utterly unprofessional. What else have you been doing? How long have you been spying on me? Am I the only one?" She had backed him up against one of her tables and he now tried to talk his way out of the situation.  
“Well, you see, I was concerned about your safety now that you're involved with one of the men who is now heavily sought by Hydra and I really wanted to know who he’s working with.” Beth narrowed her eyes at him, silently judging him as she decided what to do. She then took a step back before she turned and started shutting down her computer.  
“You know Mr. Stark, I think Miss Potts and I are going to have a long chat tomorrow morning. I would love to stay and tell you some more about my private life, but I have plans. Goodbye.” With that she walked out the door and left Tony standing there confused as to why she just didn’t tear into him, but he’d learned never to trust a raging woman. He rushed out the door to follow her, but it was already too late, she had bumped into Pepper in the lobby and the two were talking away. When Pepper looked up and saw Tony standing there, he could tell by the look in her eyes that she was furious with him. He tried to sneak away, but still he wanted to be close enough to hear what Pepper was saying.  
“Look, I’m sorry about him. He’s just been so obsessed with whole Hydra-S.H.I.E.L.D. nonsense that sometimes he forgets he’s a real boy, and we live in the real world not one of his inventions. I know that’s no excuse, but I can assure you I will get him to stop.” He kept an eye on the two women, seeing Beth nod before walking out the front of the building. Just then Pepper marched in his direction and he knew he was going to have to do something spectacular for her later.  
“Tony Stark, what are you thinking? You cannot go around and spy on people, especially an employee. She could sue you, and win. You just can’t do that, no matter who she’s connected to.” She took his arm and made her way towards the elevators and Happy followed behind them.  
“But she came to me asking if I knew anything about if he was safe or something and then she refused to tell me anymore. How am I supposed to make sure Mr. America is safe if I don’t know anything about who he’s working with.”

As Tony and Pepper sorted out what he’d done and why, Beth made her way home and began getting ready for her date that evening. That was if you could consider it a date. He’d given her specific directions on how to dress and what they would be doing but she still felt the slight butterflies in her stomach knowing she’d be seeing him again, so that meant it was a date right? No, she admitted to herself, this was not some date. This was her actually helping Steve Rogers, Captain America himself. This was better than a date.  
She checked herself in the mirror again, that made four times and she finally turned the knob and walked out her front door. She locked up and headed down the steps but ran into Nicki half way down.  
"Look at you. All ready for your date I see." Beth couldn't help but blush as she shook her head.  
"It's not a date. Well I don't know if it is or not. You're the one with the date tonight. What plans do you and Sam have?" She could tell by Nicki's smile and the way she bounced on the balls of her feet she was excited.  
"Actually he's cooking dinner tonight. Just the two if us alone at his place." Beth smiled, glad to see her friend so happy in a relationship.  
"Well, tell Sam I said hello. I better get going, but you have fun tonight. Just not too much fun." Nicki laughed as she started back up the stairs, talking over her shoulder as she went.  
"I'll tell him, but the same goes for you and Captain America tonight. Don't have too much fun, he is an old man you know."  
"Shut up. I'll see you tomorrow." Beth hurried down the stairs and out the door, finding Steve just stepping out of a cab on his way go get her. He couldn't take his eyes off her, she looked like she had the night he met her, like a more familiar time and place. She blushed under his scrutiny, hoping she had done good enough.  
"Do I look alright?" She was unable to read him at first, but soon she noticed just the slight upturn of the corners of his mouth as he looked her over.  
"You look beautiful." He seemed to realize what he said and began to tease. "The dress is good, shoes are right, but the hair." Beth panicked, her eyes widening until he smiled at her. "I'm joking. You look exactly like she did, this will work."  
Beth knew Steve was being exceptionally optimistic, but she couldn't blame him. Hell, she wanted to believe his little plan would work too, especially after learning more details about his pre-serum life.  
"I hope you're right." He could see that she wasn't so sure of his plan, but he couldn't afford the doubt. He had to believe this would work.  
The cab drove them across town and soon they found themselves in an old part of Brooklyn. Beth knew these streets well, as did Steve. They were dropped off and began walking down the street towards some old apartment buildings that were sitting empty waiting on someone to fix them up. Beth stayed closed to Steve's side knowing the area had a high crime rate, he didn't seem to mind though.  
They walked around the block a few times and Beth could see Steve giving into reality, this wasn't going to work.  
"Let's give it one more go around." He nodded as he looked down at her, hating that he's had her go through all the trouble of getting dressed up for nothing. He could feel her body drift closer his, trying to steal warmth from him after the damp cold air stole hers. He slid off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders, that’s when he noticed the dark figure coming up the street towards them.  
“This could be him. Do you remember what to do? And remember she always called him by his first name and he always treated her like a little sister, even though he knew she was over the moon for him.” She kept her eyes on the shadowy figure as she nodded, humming a simple reply. She and Steve kept their pace as did the man coming towards them, but he walked with his head down, unaware of who he was approaching. Just as he drew near, Beth could feel the butterflies in her stomach even more, so much so she was trembling as she walked. Steve could see her from the corner of his eye and decided he wasn’t going to put her in that situation.  
“Beth wait, let’s not,” that was all he had whispered before the man was on them and had run straight on into Beth. The man grabbed her arms to stop from knocking her over and simply muttered “Sorry” before stepping around her. Steve watched the man move past, oblivious to what Beth was doing until it was too late to stop her. She turned and walked after the man, grabbing his arm and speaking to him.  
“James? Is it really you?” The man stopped and slowly turned around, his eyes meeting hers before looking down to the grip her hand had on his arm. She let go, trying hard not to show her shock at grabbing the metal appendage. “James? It’s me,” she stopped when he stepped closer to her, his eyes looking as if they were pleading. Pleading from some recollection of who he was and at this moment, who she was. She watched as his expressions changed, not seeing his right hand coming up as if to touch her before dropping back down slowly.  
“I’m sorry. You must have me confused with someone. I don’t know any James.” She smiled, trying to act as if he was just pulling her leg as she glanced up at him through her lashes.  
“Bucky, I know it’s you.” His head tilted as she said that name. Trying to unjar any memory from his past, he looked her over.  
Steve stood back and watched, mesmerized by the expressions shifting over his friends face. He was studying his best friend, looking for any indication that Bucky was remembering, any sign at all. Soon the expression on Bucky’s face was unreadable as he shifted to the side, looking at Beth from another angle, and what he said next nearly knocked the breath from Steve.  
“Elizabeth?” His voice was gravely, barely more than a harsh whisper as he looked at her, and Steve had to refrain from reacting behind them.  
“Hello James.” He took another step closer, their bodies practically touching as he stared at her.  
“Elizabeth, is it you? It can’t be.” His head was swimming as he locked eyes with her. Was this really her? Elizabeth was his younger sister's best friend growing up, and this woman looked just like her. He thought she had to be a ghost, some strange apparition from his past that wasn't really there. Was this some distant memory coming back to him? Some memories were beginning to surface and perhaps this was just another one making its way back from the icy depths H.Y.D.R.A had forced them into.  
"Of course James. Who else would it be?" His eyes narrowed as he reached for her, his leather clad hand landing on her neck as he stepped closer. For a moment Beth thought her life was about to end, that he was ready to choke the breath from her body but something even more shocking to Steve happened.  
Bucky's mind had convinced him that this was a dream, that none of it was true, just a memory coming back. He looked around and the scenery began to change, it was now 1939.

_"James, you and Steve don't have to babysit us. We can take care of ourselves." He just smirked at Rebecca as they stood outside the bar, knowing he wasn't going to let his sister and her friend go out alone._   
_"Becca, this bar is full of sailors, and I'm not going to let my sister get cozy with some waterlogged fat-heads." Rebecca crossed her arms before turning and walking into the bar, Elizabeth close behind her. There was no arguing with Bucky when it came to Rebecca. She was the only family he had left and he did everything he could to protect her. That went for Elizabeth too, she'd been Rebecca's best friend since they were kids and she was just as close as family. Bucky gave Steve an exasperated look before they followed the girls in and joined them at a table close to the back of the bar._   
_A few drinks later and they were all laughing at some joke Bucky had told. Slowly the laughter died down before Bucky got serious._   
_"Becca, I just don't want you getting hurt. I know I won't always be here to protect you, but I'm here now so I plan on it." His sister gave him a sympathetic smile as she nodded in agreement._   
_" I know Buck, but one day I have to learn to handle things myself. Besides I'm never alone, Liz is always with me, and we all know she repels boys." Elizabeth whom had been talking quietly to Steve heard her name and turned, pushing her friends shoulder._   
_"Hey, the only reason I repel them is because I've not found one yet worth our time. I am perfectly capable of getting anyone of these men to buy me a drink." Bucky had always seen Rebecca and Elizabeth as young girls, so the thought of Elizabeth being approached caused him to laugh. Elizabeth blushed from anger and embarrassment from Bucky thinking she wasn't appealing to the men. His laugher slowed and he saw the raised brow she had. "What's so funny James?"_   
_"Elizabeth you're a cute doll, but these guys don't want some little girl." Elizabeth pursed her lips together as she leaned over the table._   
_"Little girl? James I'm twenty years old, not twelve." He knew she was upset so he decided he'd prove his point without being the bad guy._   
_"Alright Elizabeth, let's see if you can any of these guys to buy you a drink." She looked at him for a moment before a smirk crossed her lips._   
_"Easy as cake." She laid her clutch in the table and pulled out two bobby pins so she could quickly pin her hair up into a more popular updo. She then refreshed her lipstick before standing and turning towards the bar, raising her shoulder at James as she did. Bucky and Steve watched her walk confidently up to the bar, pushing her way in between a few sailors to gain access to the bar keep. As she moved Rebecca moved her chair so that she could watch too._   
_"Can I get a whisky please? Walker?" Elizabeth felt the man to her right eyeing her so she glanced in his direction and offered a small friendly smile._   
_"Excuse me miss, but what's a doll like you doing here alone?" The voice was deep and rich like velvet and when she turned to her left to see the face that went with it she was pleased by what she saw._   
_"Who says I'm alone?" She moved her eyes back forward as she patiently waited on her drink._   
_"Well if you were my girl I wouldn't let you order your own drink, and two girls are usually inseparable at a place like this, so I assumed you're alone." A smirk crossed her lips and she turned to face the man._   
_"Inseparable unless one of them met someone." He leaned on the bar and saw a red head at the end of the bar laughing wildly with a guy and assumed she was with Elizabeth._   
_"I see. She can't be that close of friend then." Just then Elizabeth's drink appeared and as she started to get money out of her clutch to pay but he stopped her. The man then dropped a bill on the bar and the two began to talk._   
_Rebecca talked to Steve and Bucky, but Bucky kept his eyes on Elizabeth. He didn't like how the sailor looked at her, how she laughed at whatever the man said and the fact she was to far to listen to. Bucky watched as the man bought Elizabeth another drink and then another. He knew now he'd have to watch for any indication that she had indulged too much._   
_"Bucky are you listening to a word I've said?" Rebecca was loud as she moved into his line of sight?_   
_"What? I'm trying to make sure Liz is o.k." He leaned to see around his sister, happy to see Elizabeth still laughing._   
_"Bucky if you're sweet on her you should just tell her. I know she likes you." His eyes met Rebecca's instantly hearing that Liz liked him._   
_"What? No she doesn't. Steve do you hear this nonsense?" He looked at his close friend, shocked at the way Steve agreed with Rebecca._   
_"It's true Buck. She told me herself." Bucky was shocked that Steve hadn't said anything before now._   
_"Why didn't you say anything?" Steve shrugged as he pushed around the glass of water he'd been drinking all evening._   
_"She asked me not to. She knows you don't feel the same so she asked me not to tell you." Bucky glanced back up to the bar, seeing Elizabeth and the man still talking before he looked back to Steve and Rebecca._   
_"Look, I don't know what kind of game you two are playing but it ain't funny." Just then he noticed that Elizabeth was no longer at the bar, and neither was her new friend. Panic hit him as he stood up and began to look around the room, seeing the two head out the front door._   
_Bucky began pushing way to the front of the bar, narrowly avoiding a few drunken sailors before he made out to the front sidewalk. He looked up and down the street but there was no one in sight, that's when he heard it. There was a whimper and shuffling sound coming from his right and he started moving closer to the sound. He rounded the corner and saw Elizabeth being held up against the wall by the man from the bar. It was obvious this wasn't a consensual act. Heat radiated his cheek as his jaw tightened and before he knew it, his body began to move towards the two. His mind went dark as his instincts took over, his feet moving at a fast run._   
_The next thing Bucky knew, he was standing with Elizabeth, her arms wrapped around him as she cried into his chest. He looked down at the man who laid in a heap on the ground, his nose broken and more than likely his jaw too._   
_"Let's get you outta here" Bucky said as he turned and led Elizabeth back towards where Steve and Rebecca were waiting. There was silence as Bucky and Elizabeth walked back to the main street, and neither Steve nor Rebecca spoke up as Bucky and Elizabeth walked down the sidewalk.] Steve and Rebecca looked at each other, both knowing that it would be best to let the others have a private conversation, so they walked behind them a ways._   
_Bucky remembered how Elizabeth's hair looked in the dim moonlight, how she trembled once in a while and how pale her face had become. He would look at her as they walked, wanting her to look at him, but she was too ashamed to do so. They walked past Rebecca's apartment, going the three blocks to Elizabeth's before they stopped. Bucky watched as she fumbled with her clutch to find her door key, seeing the tears threatening her eyes._   
_"That guy was a jerk, I should have been there sooner. I'm sorry." Did she just hear him right? James Buchanan Barnes just apologized to her? Surely she misunderstood what he said._   
_"What?" Her eyes moved up to his and he could see her shame masked in confusion. "You have no reason to be sorry. I'm the one who loused up the night."_   
_"I do have a reason. That bar is full of shady characters, I should have told you that you didn't need to prove anything to me." He looked uncomfortable as he thought of what to say. Sweet talking was something he was really good at, but expressing his feelings was foreign to him. "Liz, any guy would be lucky to have you on his arm." His puppy dog eyes looked into hers, hoping she would just know what he was wanting to say._

Bucky looked around, they were just in front of Elizabeth's building but everything was different. The deli across the way was now a barber shop, and the building behind him wasn't the same. He looked back into Beth's eyes, thinking about how just the sight of her brought his old memories back. That is when he shocked Steve and Beth, when he leaned down and kissed her softly. For Bucky it was reconnecting with who he was but for Beth it was different. Sure she'd kissed people without having any emotional attachment to them, but all those times she never felt anything. This time though she felt something, she just didn't know if it was good or bad.


	6. Chapter 6

The room was bright as Beth struggled to open her eyes, the sun forcing them closed as she became aware of how much pain she was in. Her jaw was sore as was her body, but the worst pain was at the back of her head. Her eyes were only open in little slivers as she began to sit up, until the nausea overcame her.

"Whoa. Slow down or you'll end up in worse shape."

Beth let herself lay back as she reached up and felt the source of the pain in her head, a large knot. She pulled her hand away from the bump as she squinted in the direction of the female voice.

"What happened? Where am I?" She then tried to sit up again, this time being met by a hand on her shoulder pushing her back. "Steve, where is he?"

"Hey, it's alright." Her voice was calm and even as she spoke to Beth, her face slowly coming into focus. "You're at Sam Wilson's house and Steve is just in the other room. You don't remember what happened?"  Beth first noticed the woman's red hair, then her green eyes.

"I know you, from Stark industries." Natasha moved around the room so she could close the curtains, waiting for Beth to recall what had happened. "Um. I remember going with Steve to Brooklyn. Walking around the block like a dozen times." She knit her brows as she thought, what else went on.

"Alright, you and Steve walked. Why?" Beth thought about it for a moment, trying to get her thoughts in order. She was just about to speak when she overheard Sam raise his voice in the other room.

"You shouldn't have tried that alone. She could have been killed Steve. I know this is a very personal mission but don't go it alone." It was all starting to come back to her now.

"Bucky. We went to find Bucky." Natasha only nodded as she sat in a chair next to the bed. "We found him, or he found us. I talked to him as if I was someone he knew. It worked, Steve's idea worked. Only for a moment but it worked." Natasha remained quiet as she watched Beth carefully. "Then something went wrong. He looked at Steve and his eyes changed. He was angry and I remember his hand had been on my neck but when he saw Steve he withdrew and took a step towards him. They had a stare down for a minute and he told Steve his mission was to kill him. Steve started pleading with him and he just got madder. I stepped forward, and he swung around and backhanded me. That's the last I remember, it goes blank after that "

Natasha had no doubt that is what happened, she was there to see it, matter of fact she was the one who saved Beth but she didn't totally trust her.

"Tell me, why did he talk to you? Of all the people, why you?" Beth just looked at Natasha. "Are you sure you've never met him?" Could she really think Beth was lying? Or worse, affiliated with Hydra?

"What are you implying?" Natasha raised her eyebrows as she leaned back.

"I only asked a question. There were no implications." Beth narrowed her eyes, she knew from Tony and Happy that Natasha was no one to mess with. "If you think I'm not going to watch you just because Steve trust you, then you're mistaken." Steve startled both women as he cleared his throat. Natasha simply stood up and walked out of the room, but as she passed Steve he grabbed her arm.

"I can watch out for myself, and if you don't trust her, you're the one who's mistaken." Natasha looked back at Beth one last time before disappearing out of sight.

Beth watched the way he whispered to the red-headed assassin, wondering what type of connection the two had because it's seemed to go deeper than the Avengers. His voice brought Beth back to reality and she found herself longing for his embrace.

"How are you feeling?" She looked up at him as he stood there waiting for an answer. More than that he was waiting to see if she was upset with him for putting her in harm's way.

"Sore, but overall alright." He let go of a breath as he took the seat Natasha had left, sitting on the edge so he could be close to her. "Why am I sore? I remember him backhanding me, after that I'm blank." Steve reached out and turned her chin so that he could get a clear look at the bruise on her jaw.

"When he hit you, you fell back and hit your head pretty good. After that he came at me, and while I was trying to stop him you managed to get to your feet. That's when Natasha came out of nowhere and pushed you out of the way from a bus coming down the road. You hit the pavement hard and was out cold."  She just wanted to lean in and kiss him, his lips were so tempting. She decided against it, not wanting to ruin their first kiss, if there would be one.

"And Bucky? Did you at least get through to him?" Steve shook his head no as he sat back in the seat, his expression telling her enough to know Bucky still had no recollection of his best friend.

"He's still all messed up from Hydra. But you, you made some connection with him. You made him at least remember someone." She could see a distant hurt in his eyes and she hated that he had seen the kiss between her and Bucky. Hated that her eyes fluttered open slowly and that the two shared a longing look after, but she hated most her inability to just speak the truth.

"I don't think it will be long before he figures out I'm not her. Maybe he already figured it out and that's why he struck me." Steve shook his head no, that was not the reason at all.

"Bucky didn't hit you. That was the winter soldier. No, Bucky is lost inside there somewhere and I've got to figure a way to get him out." She sat up slowly, trying to keep the pain choked back as she got herself into a seated position on the edge of the bed. Once her feet were on the ground she reached over and took his hand.

"I'll help you in any way I can. Just say the word." Once again Steve found himself looking at her hand holding his, staring as he fought with himself to just kiss her.

Beth had called off work sick for two days, and when she got there Friday morning she was surprised to see Happy waiting on her in the lab. He was busy looking at some of the ammunitions she had spread out on the counter from doing calculations the day she found out Tony had been watching her.

"To what do I owe the pleasure Happy?" The man jumped, knocking bullets all over the floor. He yelled but quickly stopped, hoping that he didn't appear to be easily startled.

"Shit," he muttered as he got down on one knee to pick up the scattered rounds. "I'm sorry Beth. Pepper asked me to come down to get you but you weren't here yet so I was just having a look around while I waited." As he spoke Beth made her way over to him, stooping down to help clean up the mess he'd made.

"Don't worry about it. You, I don't mind looking around. It Mr. Stark's snooping that bothers me." They had picked up the last the bullets when Happy finally looked about Beth, and he immediately saw the bruise.

"Wow. Beth are you alright? That's one nasty looking bruise." She shrugged as she rose to her feet before grabbing a tray to put the ammo on.

"I've been better, but I've also been worse."

Happy could only nod in response, and a feeling of anger started. He sat the bullets on tray as Beth locked her personal belongings in a locker tucked in the back of her laboratory, his anger bubbling more and more as  he studied the almost hand shaped bruise. She approached him smiling hoping this meeting with Pepper had nothing to do with her personal relationships, but Happy couldn't help but ask.

"Are you sure you're alright. I mean, are you dating someone who's, well, hurting you? Because if you are and you're afraid to leave then," Beth was quiet as he started, shocked he'd think she was in an abusive relationship and also touched he cared enough to ask. She the interrupted his rambling by speaking up.

"Happy no. The person who did this doesn't even know me, so please don't worry. I'm fine I promise." He eyed her up for moment before nodding.

"Alright. Let's go on up before she's down here thinking I'm goofing off." Beth suppressed a giggle as she nodded and began walking with him to the elevators.

Pepper's reaction to Beth's jaw was laced with anger and disgust as she proceeded to ask if Steve had somehow put her in danger.

"Seriously, I'd expect Tony to be the only one to do something putting others in danger. And Tony only does it when he let's his emotions get the better of him. I thought for sure Steve the type of guy who thinks out every detail, I mean god, just look at you. How could he not protect you at all cost? That's it, I'm going to pay him a visit " Beth didn't want to admit to going after Bucky, but she didn't want Pepper thinking it was solely steve's fault, after all she knew the risks when she agreed to his personal mission.

"Ms. Potts, it's not what it looks like. I can also assure you that whomever I chose to spend my with, is completely my choice." Pepper's anger gave way to embarrassment, and she sat quietly for a moment.

"That was inappropriate as your boss. But I'm also your friend." Beth let out a breath as she leaned back in the leather chair.

"I know, but I'd rather not talk about it right now." Pepper let it go and the two started talking business.

\---

That evening as Beth changed out of her work clothes, her phone buzzed with a message from Steve.

>are you free tonight? I still owe you the sixties.

Beth couldn't stop from giggling as she read the text, taking a moment to find the right response that didn't sound overly eager. She must have typed a dozen different responses before finally just forcing herself to hit send.

>sure. Come on over.

She then buzzed around her small apartment, tidying up before Steve arrived. She had just about cleaned the whole place when she got to her bedroom. She simply went in, checked herself in the mirror and walked out closing the door behind her. She knew Steve well enough to know that

there would be no reason to tidy up that room tonight. She had just sat down and was looking through her playlist for the era when there was a knock at her door. She found herself panicking slightly, so she took a deep breath to clear out the butterflies and then opened the door. She stepped back as Steve walked in carrying a pizza.

“You brought dinner, that’s really sweet. And I have the perfect compliment to that pizza.” Steve smiled as he turned and looked at Beth, not knowing where to go. “Oh, you can set on the coffee table. I’ll grab some plates and drinks and join you.”

“I’ll be here waiting.” He sat down shaking his head, not knowing why he just said that; she knew he’d be waiting. He opened the box and spoke over his shoulder. “I didn’t know what you’d like so I got pepperoni. I hope that’s alright.” Beth appeared by his side and handed him a beer and a plate.

“That’s fine with me. Just so you know though, any pizza topping is fine with me.” Steve thanked her for the beer and waited for her to take the first slice.

“That’s good to know.” He got his own slice, chuckling to himself as Beth tried to take a bite only to burn her lip.

“Ow, shit. Damn it. Stupid twist top, ow, now my hand hurts.” She turned to look at Steve, embarrassed that she got all flustered in front of him. He tried to hide his grin as he took her bottle and twisted off the top.

“Be careful, it’s hot.” Beth took a long drink of the beer to cool off her lip before returning his banter.

“Thank you Captain Obvious.” They both laughed for a moment and soon conversation turned to the reason for their dinner date.

Beth explained everything from the Civil Rights Movement she could remember, the assassinations of JFK and Martin Luther King, the Berkeley free speech movement and the war in Vietnam. She tried to add as much positivity in it that she could, not wanting Steve to think the country he would protect with his life had changed in a way that made it bloodier by the decade. After they'd finished eating and had 3 beers each, the music came on. Beth wasn't really drunk, but perhaps her inhibitions were fading away. She and Steve danced and laughed through eight songs when suddenly things slowed down. As Percy Sledge started singing When a Man Loves a Woman, Beth slowly put her head against Steve's shoulder and he pulled her hand to his chest as he held her close. He wanted to ask her about their relationship, but this moment felt so right he kept quiet and simply swayed with her to the music. Steve was happy that the next few songs kept her close, listening to her softly singing along.

"Like the river flows surely to the sea. Darling so it goes, some things are meant to be." He felt her fingers playing with the hair at the base of his skull and he looked at her only to find her looking back at him. Her other hand eased from his and with that she touched his jaw before raising up on the tips of her toes to press her lips to his. She lingered there for a moment then pulled away, list heavy in her eyes.

"I've been meaning to do that" Steve whispered before leaning down to plant a kiss of his own. Their kisses were soft and slow, both savoring every second of each other. Soon their dancing had ended, the two now occupying the sofa as they continued tasting lips and tongues. Steve slowly began to pull from her, his mind body protesting his mind's decision. As he separated from her Beth looked up to him biting her lip, wishing he hadn't stopped.

"I better get going."Steve stood up and held a hand out to Beth, helping her up but something caught his eye. He whispered to Beth, asking her to shut off the lights and she could tell by his body language that something was off. She walked over calmly and shut off the lights then turned to see Steve looking the window.

Steve watched as the dark figure disappeared from the roof of the building next to Beth’s. Even in the dim light of the sliver of the moon, there was no hiding the glimmering of a metal arm now exposed as if a warning to anyone who was fool enough to come after him.

"He was watching us. He was just out there watching us." He turned to look at Beth and could see the worry in her eyes.

"Hopefully he's remembering." He took one last look out the window before closing the curtains.

"I hope so. I hate the idea of leaving you here alone knowing what he did to you." Beth crossed the room to stand next to him, his eyes looking at the yellowing bruise before meeting hers.

"Then stay here. Keep me safe. I think I'd sleep better if you did." With that her arms slid around him and his around her. Steve rested his chin on her head as she waited for his answer, clarifying that they didn’t have to sleep together. “The guest room is pretty sparse, but it serves it purpose.” Steve took a deep breath, he wasn’t going to risk something else happening to her, but would him being there put her at more risk? If he was being honest with himself he wanted to stay, and not in the guest room. He decided he’d rather stay and make sure she was safe than to leave and risk not being there to protect her.


	7. Chapter 7

Bucky sat on the roof of the neighboring building, watching the woman he thought was Elizabeth. He’d been there for the past few days but she hadn't done much except sit at her small computer to read and type away, but tonight that man showed up. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he was supposed to know that man, but everytime time he tried he’d see someone different. He’d tried telling himself that the man’s face was familiar because it was his mission to kill that man, but that never felt right. At night, in flashes of dreams, he had seen that face but it was different. He had remembered a man, more like a boy, named Steve that he’d known. But that was decades ago, could this really be him? Then there was the woman.  
She looked so much like Elizabeth, and he remembered her more clearly. She was a few years younger than himself, best friends friends with Rebecca. He hung his head as he thought about Rebecca. He’d pieced enough of his past together to know that he’d gone missing, that he was an experiment and that he’d been alive far longer than he should have been. He would sometimes have these vivid nightmares of a man with a red face. In these nightmares he would be yelling at another soldier, one he could never see, and the two would end up on a train. He would fly through the freezing air, and he could remember the cold air piercing his lungs. Then there was the falling, always the falling. He’d wake up just as the cold white snow around him turned black.  
Bucky shook his head and turned his attention back to the window. The woman was dancing with the man, both of them laughing and spinning around. He found himself smiling as he watched them, faintly hearing her laugh through the old windows of her apartment. As he watched, the laughter slowed and now they were simply smiling, her head resting on the man’s shoulder. He could see the man was enamored with the woman and then there was a flash of remembrance. He’d seen that same smitten look before on that man. They were at a bar and the man was in uniform when a beautiful british brunette came over. The man looked at that woman the same as he’s looking at the woman now.  
Troubled by the thought that this man was indeed a friend of his, he stood to leave. The sight of what was happening stopped him though. The woman he thought was Elizabeth was kissing the man, Steve. He stopped worrying why he was asked to kill his apparent friend when he saw how Elizabeth kissed Steve. He watched as the two slowly stopped swaying, as their arms held onto one another. He looked on as two of the only faces in this world that seemed to really know him met in a union of lips and tongues. They slowly backed over to the sofa and sat down, their lips still pressed together in a heated moment of teenage like hormone driven lust. Her hand gripped the top of Steve’s shirt but Bucky watched as Steve put his hand over hers and slowly pulled away. The two wanted to continue with the exploration of mouths and bodies but they stopped reluctantly. As Steve rose to his feet, he held a hand for Elizabeth and then he looked out the window. Bucky had seen enough, he turned, pulling his leather jacket on over his cold metal arm as he disappeared around the side of the building. Now he just needed to escape the red-headed woman whom had been following him for the past week.  
\--  
Saturday morning Beth woke up to the sounds of her kitchen cabinets being open and shut so she got up and padded her way down the hall in nothing but shirt she’d slept in. As she got into the living room she could see Steve at the stove in his clothes from the night before and a towel tossed over his shoulder. He was humming as he cooked and she took a few steps closer to lean on the counter and listen to him.  
“I hope you like scrambled eggs,” he said over his shoulder, startling Beth.  
“How did you know I was back here?” He grinned as he turned to look at her.  
"I've got very good hearing. I hope you don't mind" he said as he motioned to the food.  
"Oh, not at all. Is there anything I can help you do?" He shook his head as he finishing cooking and plating the food. Beth noticed he’d cleaned up any mess he’d already made and had made coffee already. She told him she’d “be right back” before jumping up and heading back to her room to at least slip on a pair of sweatpants. When she re-joined Steve in her small kitchen she couldn’t help but smile. It was more of a nervous smile though, remembering how she’d been the one to instigate their kiss the night before.  
“It smells really good.” Steve smiled as he sat down the food before pouring orange juice and sitting next to her.  
“Thank you.” He could see the way she avoided eye contact, but the rest of her body language told him she had rather enjoyed his company.  
The two ate in silence for a long while until Beth couldn’t take it anymore.  
“So.” Steve finished his bite, took a drink of his coffee before saying anything.  
“So” he replied, not really knowing what else to say himself.  
“About last night,” she started but Steve didn’t want her excuses.  
“Beth it’s alright, we’d been drinking. I understand if you,” Her eyes met his as she pushed her plate away and took his arm, effectively stopping him.  
“You said you’d been meaning to do it. Why hadn’t you?” Steve sat there for a moment thinking that he'd actually said that out loud. After he and Beth had called it a night he had convinced himself that he only thought it, not said it out loud.  
"I was waiting for the right time." She couldn't stop thinking how cute he was when he was slightly flustered, so she joked with him a little.  
"At your age haven't you learned sometimes you have to act and not wait." He grinned big as he shook his head, liking that she wasn't afraid to poke fun at him.  
"This old man could teach you a thing or two about taking action." The two laughed together before making plans for the following Friday. Steve then got a call and left in a hurry once he kissed Beth goodbye.

That week she went to work as usual, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being watched. She chalked it up to knowing that Tony had her followed before, and with that she tried to push it from her mind. She worked late every night, causing her to rush home on Friday so that she could shower before her date with Steve. It was officially a date too. She had made sure to clarify before he left. She was just stepping out of the shower when she heard her front door open and close. She wrapped her robe around her still wet body and stuck her head out into the hallway.  
“Nicki, is that you?” She didn’t get a response so she walked down the living room and looked around, not seeing anyone, now she was scared. She walked over and opened the front door, looking up and down the hall before retreating back into her apartment and locking the door. She then went to go back into her room but something caught her eye. On her coffee table was an old black and white photograph. She sat down and looked it over, tears forming in her eyes. It was of her grandmother. She got up and went over to the window, looking out to see if he was on the next building, but she didn’t see him. She hadn’t seen him all week.

  
A knock at the door broke her thoughts and she rushed over and looked through the peephole. Steve was standing there looking nervous and Beth opened the door quickly.  
"Come in" was the only thing Steve heard when he felt her hand on his wrist pulling him into her apartment. Once he saw she was only in a robe he averted his eyes. Beth never noticed the tinge of color on his cheeks as she handed him the photograph. His eyes met hers briefly before looking at the picture now in his hand. He looked at the photo of a familiar face in another era.  
"Is this Elizabeth?" he asked as he looked it over not sure what the significance of the photo was.  
"Yes, but more importantly is that someone left that on my coffee table." Steve looked at Beth, now seeing why she acted panicked.  
"When?" He was now more concerned that someone had came into her apartment when she was most vulnerable.  
"Just a few minutes ago while I was in the shower. The thing is, I've never seen it before. I don't know where it came from." Steve looked at the photo again.  
"Could it be from Bucky?" Beth wrapped her arms around herself as she sat on the sofa, "How would he have it? You said he went missing during the war and this looks like right around the early to mid 50's." Steve had a gut feeling that this was a sign, he just wasn't sure of what. Steve looked her over and saw how nervous she was.  
"Look i'm here now, no need to worry. Go get ready and I'll look around to make sure everything is alright." Beth nodded and did just that, she focused on her date knowing Steve would be there to protect her. Soon the two were seated at a little diner a few blocks away laughing and enjoying each other.

Saturday morning Beth wake up to her phone ringing and she groaned as she picked it up. She saw it was Nicki and slid her finger across the screen, answering the call.  
"It's too early. Go back to bed." She heard a deep chuckle come over the line and all sleepiness was gone. She sat up as she addressed the caller again. "Hello?" Again the chuckle was heard but this time a voice accompanied it.  
"Beth, it's Sam. Hey sorry to wake you." She pulled the phone away from her ear to look at the screen, once again seeing Nicki's number.  
"Hey Sam. Is everything alright?" She hoped Nicki and Sam hadn't done something crazy, like head off to Atlantic City.  
"Oh yea. I'm actually calling because Nicki left her phone here last night. I was hoping you could let her know I have it and that I'll stop by after my support group meeting this afternoon to give it back to her." Beth smiled, now that sounded exactly like Nicki, leaving in a hurry and forgetting something, although Nicki's whole life was on that phone. Maybe her night with Sam was just that mind blowing.  
"No problem Sam. I'll head over and let her know. I'm sure she's over there tearing her apartment up looking for it." They both laughed before saying goodbye and hanging up, and then Beth drug herself out of bed.  
She slid on a pair of shorts with her t-shirt and padded her way across the hall, knocking lightly on Nicki's door. She could hear Nicki moving around and talking on the other side of the door and she knew her prediction was true so she knocked louder and waited. A few seconds later Nicki opened the door, talking as she walked away.  
"Hey Beth. I'm just looking for my phone. Damn thing must be on silent." Beth shut the door behind her and followed Nicki into her bedroom.  
"No. You just forgot it at Sam's." Nicki turned around and just stared at Beth for a moment.  
"How do you know?" Beth leaned on the door chuckling at the clothes scattered on Nicki's floor.  
"He called me. Asked me to let you know that he'll bring it back to you after he holds his support group meeting." Beth then crossed her arms as she raised an eyebrow at her friend. "How did you forget your phone anyway?"  
Nicki just shrugged her shoulders, a small embarrassed smile crossing her lips.  
"I was distracted I guess." She sat down on her bed as the smile grew. "Beth, I'm really liking Sam."  
Beth sat down and the two talked about the men in their lives for a while and then Beth went back to her apartment when Sam showed up to Nicki's.  
She was buzzing around getting ready when Steve showed up and he waited patiently for her. She came into the living room and sat down to lace up her boots as she spoke to him.  
"Are you sure about this? I mean she hardly recognized me last time I saw her. I just don't want you to be affected by it." Steve nodded as he took in what she said, but once she was done he stood up and held a hand out to her.  
"I understand what you're saying, but I've accepted the fact not long ago that everyone I knew is gone or close to it. I'm not saying it's not going to affect me, but it's not a bad thing. I've learned to appreciate what's right in front of me because of it." Beth stood up and she could practically feel this heartbeat they were so close, she found it hard to look at him under his gaze so she looked down at her hand in his. The tension in the room was thick, but neither one was sure how to move forward with the other.  
"I'm ready if you are." Her voice was small, making Steve smile as he reached up to tilt her chin up to him. "I have a feeling this will help us. Do you trust me?" She was lost in his blue eyes, only nodding yes as she smiled.  
An hour later the two were walking into a care facility just outside the city hoping to see an old friend. They checked in at the front desk and soon were lead back to a small room that felt like a hospital room. Lying in the bed was frail little woman staring out the window and Beth thought this wasn't going to lead anywhere. Steve then walked over to the bed and sat down in the chair by the window.  
"Hello Rebecca. Remember me?" The woman sat there for a long time just looking past him out the window. The longer they waited the more Beth felt this wasn't going to help them at all. After all, nearly twenty minutes had ticked by, all of which Steve talked to the old woman hoping to jar open some recollection. He too had began to lose hope, Rebecca hadn't even glanced in his direction as he spoke to her. Perhaps Beth was right, she was too far gone. He stood up and looked at the old woman one last time before moving towards the door. Beth had been leaning on the wall waiting, but as he got close she stood up. She reached out and ran her hand down his arm before her hand slipped into his. "Liz? Steve? Are you to an item?" Beth and Steve looked at each other shocked before turning around to see Rebecca's brown eyes staring at them? Steve was fighting to keep from tearing up as he let go of Beth to make his way back over to Rebecca.  
"You could say that, although I haven't officially asked her yet." Rebecca put her hand on his as she smiled.  
"You better be careful, when James finds out he's not going to be happy." Steve nodded and his smile faded.  
"Speaking of your brother, have you seen him lately?" Rebecca looked lost for a moment before her smile returned.  
"Yes. He was here this morning. He said he had seen you but you two hadn’t talked recently. Are you mad at each other over something, or someone?" She looked towards Beth and Steve shook his head no as he tried to think of what to say.  
"No. We've both just been busy is all. I'm sure I'll" he trailed off seeing the vacant look in Rebecca's eyes now.  
"Hello, are you here for my tray?" She no longer had any recollection of him, she only saw him as a young face in the crowd. He smiled as he motioned to her empty table.  
"No ma'am. Simply stopping in to see if there is anything you need." She smiled as she leaned closer to him.  
"You look like someone." He smiled back at her as he put his hands in his pockets.  
"Do I?" She smiled wider as she spoke.  
"You look like that man on T.V. who sells the razors." Steve’s smile faded as he politely thanked Rebecca. He led Beth into the hall where he heard Beth snickering softly. He looked down to her and she shrugged, "she's not wrong, you do look like the guy who's in the razor commercials." He bumped into her as they walked out of the building, neither of them noticing the dark figure following them.


	8. Chapter 8

For two weeks Steve continued visiting Rebecca, hoping that maybe she'd be able to give him more information on Bucky, but it had been a long shot and Steve knew it. Still he would go when he had time and Beth would join him on her days off. Most days Rebecca was quiet, but on occasion she believed it was still 1940 and she would laugh and joke with Steve and Beth like her old friends. Steve went for another visit to Rebecca, and this time was totally different.

He walked to the small room and stopped in the doorway when he saw a man next to her. He knew instantly that the man was Bucky, and he stood frozen to the spot not knowing what to do. After a moment, Bucky spoke.

"I remember you, and what happened." Steve let go of a breath as he stepped lightly into the room.

"Buck, I wish I had known, I would have found you." He turned to face Steve, but he never let go of Rebecca's hand.

"But you didn't, and that's alright. Becca has made sure I know that. Her time's running out Steve, and I don't want to let her go." Steve could see how frail she'd become and his heart went out to Bucky.

"Do you want me to leave?" Bucky looked back to his sister, a small smirk spreading on his lips.

"No. You've helped her remember so much, and I think she'd like having you here. She used to say you brought out the good in me." Steve smiled as he went and stood at the other side of Rebecca's bed, taking her other hand and whispering to her that he was there. He then took a seat opposite Bucky.

"Hey, I just stopped you from doing anything too stupid." A small chuckle left Bucky’s lips.

"That's because you would do the stupid stuff." They both shared a small laugh, but soon the room grew quiet again.

The men sat next to Rebecca each making small talk once in awhile as they grew tired. For several hours they both sat by Rebecca's side, both seeing her getting further away. As one of the nurses came in, she commented that she had never seen both "grandsons" in at the same time and they both chuckled, Steve speaking up.

"We try to come at different times for her." He then glanced up at the clock and his smile faded.

"I'm actually late. I'm supposed to be at a friend's house for dinner in two minutes. I better go, but Buck, you know where to find me don't you? If something changes?" Bucky only nodded as Steve stood to leave. Steve put his hand and Buck's shoulder as he paused behind him, smiling at Rebecca before he left the siblings alone.

He rushed across the city, taking the subway then running the rest of the three blocks to Beth's building. He bound the steps two at a time and when he reached Beth's door, he stood there catching his breath before knocking. After what Steve believed to be way too long, Beth finally answered the door but stood there with her arms crossed.

“I was beginning to wonder if you had to go save the world again.” he stepped closer, but Beth leaned in the doorway as she looked up at him, head cocked.

“I'm sorry I'm late, but I've got some good news and bad news to tell you.” She simply raised her eyebrows as she waited. When he knew she wasn't moving he closed the gap between them and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I talked to Bucky.” Her eyes went wide as she leaned back and looked him in the eyes, pulling him in her apartment. She shut the door before leading him to the sofa.

“Alright, tell me what happened.” He could see her looking him over and he smiled knowing she was checking for injuries. He took her hand and started telling her about his visit to Rebecca. When he told her Rebecca was getting weak, she moved closer to him and rested her head on his chest. He could tell she was sad to hear about the woman who had so quickly become their close friend, so he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. They sat in silence for a few minutes before Beth started asking questions.

“So do you think he remembers everything? Even the winter soldier stuff?” Steve ran his hands up and down Beth's arms as she laid against him, and by the tone of his voice she new he was worried.

“I think he might. I didn't push him, letting him talk mostly. He talked about Rebecca mostly but I could see it in him, he didn't trust me one hundred percent.” She wanted to know if he brought up Elizabeth, but before she could answer she caught a whiff of something. She bolted upright then got up and ran to the kitchen.

“No. No. No. Please don't be too bad.” Steve got up and followed her, finding her at the stove with a blackened dish in her hand. She took off the oven mitt and tossed it on the counter next to the sink where she dropped the obviously way to burnt to eat food she had made. She turned to Steve with tears in her eyes but a smile on her lips. “I guess we're eating out or ordering delivery.” He smiled as she chuckled with blurred vision.

“Hey, I'm sorry. It's my fault for being late.” She chuckled again as she shrugged her shoulders and teased him.

“You're right. It's totally your fault. Punk.” He could tell she was being sarcastic, and he wanted to laugh with her but that last little word threw him off. He stood there stoic for a moment, and Beth began to worry she'd hurt his feelings. “Steve I'm joking, it's not your fault, well not totally. I forgot about it when you were late. I was worried about you and I totally forgot.” He just smiled as he shook his head, not sure if he had heard her right.

“Punk?” She couldn't read him, she had no clue if he was really upset or just messing with her so she tried to explain.

“Yea, but I meant it as a joke. I'm really sorry if I hurt you by saying it.” He could see the sincerity in her eyes and he decided it was just an odd coincidence.

“Beth it's fine. I just hadn't heard anyone say that in a while. So,” he stood there bouncing one hand off his fist smiling at her, “where should we order dinner from?”

Two hours later the two found themselves dancing in the middle of Beth's living room, music from the eighties playing through her stereo. The music slowed down and Steve pulled Beth against his body, loving the smell of the juniper on her skin. Holding her hand against his chest let him easily use his index finger to tilt her chin up to him, waiting until her eyes met his before he leaned down and gently pressed his lips to hers. At first the kiss was chaste, but when her tongue swept across his lower lip it deepened rapidly. His arm held her close as his other hand let go of hers so that it could travel to her neck and tangle with her hair. He shivered as her fingers traveled up the back of his scalp, eliciting moan from Steve's throat.  The sound caused Beth's body temperature to rise and her knees to weaken. Steve held onto her as he pulled his lips away.

“Are you alright?” His lust laden eyes searched hers as she took a deep breath.

“Better than alright.” A blush appeared on her cheeks once she realized she had spoken out loud. As the meaning of her words hit him, Steve leaned down and kissed her again, passion pulsating with each movement of his lips and tongue. They were totally lost in the moment and each other when a knock came from the door, and neither of them heard it. The person waiting in the hall grew impatient and knocked again. This time it got the attention of both Steve and Beth, who both reluctantly pulled from each other. Beth was still breathless as she answered the door, surprised to see Natasha looking back at her.

“Can I help you?” Natasha looked around Beth and spoke directly to Steve.

“We have a situation, and I thought I'd give you a chance to calm down your friend first.” Concern masked Steve's face and he rushed towards the door. He nodded at Natasha and she headed downstairs to give the two privacy. Steve looked at Beth, not knowing what to say but she seemed to know for him.

“Go. He needs you.” A smiled tugged at the corner of his mouth then he leaned down and kissed her.

“I'll talk to you soon” and with that he was out the door and down the hall.

\--

“Nat, have you spotted him?” She was on her bike two blocks up from where Steve was riding. His voice came through the earpiece again. “Nat?”

“Nothing yet Cap, but we are four blocks down from where he was last spotted.” As they approached the last spot he was seen, the evidence was glaring. A car turned over, store front windows smashed and a hydrant spewing water 20 feet in the air.

“I think we're close.” She smirked at his observation

“What gave you that idea?” She turned up a side street and met Steve as he came toward her. They paused next to each other and took their helmets off, looking around for something that would tell them what direction Bucky had taken off to. Steve looked to Natasha with his brows knit, “where could he have gone?” just then from a block over, the sound of twisting metal caught their attention. With a simple look they both donned their helmets and rushed in the direction of the sound. They rounded the corner and could see a dark figure pulling the railing off a bridge. Then just as if someone flipped a switch he stopped and sat down, legs dangling over the water below. Steve looked at the destruction around him but when he looked to the figure now sitting with his head hung, he knew that was not the man responsible for all the damage. The fact was that man was damaged, and Steve would do anything on his power to help him.

\--

Beth locked the door and sank into the sofa after Steve left, and she prayed he'd be alright. She laid her head back let her mind drift away with the music, thinking about the heat sparked by Steve’s kiss. After ten minutes of not moving, she got up and went to the bathroom, taking a cold shower to cool off her thoughts. Once done she slid into her warm fuzzy pajama pants and an old t-shirt before making her way back into the living room. She cleaned up from dinner and began putting the furniture back in its normal place. She was just about done when the air around her changed, her hair stood on end and she felt as if someone was behind her. She stopped and took a deep breath before holding it, straining to hear anything she could. After a few seconds she began to slowly exhale, thinking it was just her nerves, but a searing pain told her she was right. It started in the back of her head where she had been struck, and as she turned to see by who, her knees gave out and she started to fall. Before her world went black she saw the face of pure evil.

\--

Steve heard Nat cautioning him, but he didn't listen as he approached the bridge. As he drew close, he heard an unmistakable voice.

“She's gone.” Steve make his way closer, sitting down next to his once lost friend.

“I'm sorry.” He could see Bucky nod from the corner of his eye.

“The redhead, do you trust her?” Steve glanced over his shoulder to Natasha, and he decided to tell Bucky the truth.

“As long as she's on my side, I'd trust her with my life.” Bucky sat quietly, the thoughts of everything he'd lost, everything that had been taken away from him crossing his mind. He never took his eyes from the glistening water below him as he spoke to Steve.

“I want to help you take down every Hydra agent. Every. Single. One.”


	9. Chapter 9

Steve had sat and talked to Bucky for several hours, he brought up things from the past but Bucky only remembered about half of it. After a while they just sat silently, until Steve's curiosity got the best of him.

“Hey Buck, how much do you remember?” There were only the sounds of early morning surrounding them as Bucky stared off into the distance. Steve didn't know if Bucky hadn't heard him or if he was refusing to answer, so he sat there patiently waiting. Bucky then rose to his feet and Steve copied the action.

“I need to go. I shouldn't be out here during the day where I can be seen. I know where to find you, and don't let the redhead follow me this time.” Steve turned to see Natasha still watching them and when he turned back around Bucky had began walking away. He thought about going after him, but his gut told him to find out just how long Natasha had been following Bucky.

He strode back over to where Natasha was leaning on her bike, blank expression on her face.

“So you're just letting him walk away?” Steve came to rest in front of her, and even though he was in his street clothes, he hooked his fingers in his waistband and looked at her sternly.

“How long have you been tailing him?” She didn't change her stance as she looked him over, knowing he was not going to be happy with any answer she gave.

“Long enough to know he watches your girlfriend like a hawk, but that she never knows he's there. I guess maybe she isn't as bad as I thought.” She hoped that by bringing Beth into the mix that Steve might be lenient on everything else. The way his jaw set and flexed told her she struck a nerve, but she remained motionless.

“Beth has nothing to do with what I asked. Why have you been following him?” He tilted his head down, his eyes boring into Natasha as she finally stood upright.

“Some people don't trust him, or what he's been through. Look around you Cap, isn't this proof enough he's dangerous?” With that she turned and climbed onto her bike and strapped on her helmet. She took off in the opposite direction and Steve started cleaning up what he could. It was six in the morning when he decided he had to get some rest if he was going to be out looking for Bucky that evening.

\--

When Beth didn't show up for work, Pepper had Happy call, and when she didn’t answer her phone, he was sent to her apartment. He stood at the door and knocked, and knocked, and knocked. When he got no answer he checked with her landlord about getting let in, but he wasn't a cop and she wasn't officially missing, so he was no help. That's when Happy took matters into his own hands, he went upstairs, called Pepper and told her to get her checkbook ready. He then rushed the door, shoulder first only to bounce back a few feet. He took a few steps back, letting himself rest against the wall across the hall before rushing her door again. This time he hit with a thud and groan, muttering to himself “What the hell kind of door is this?” He heaved himself back again, this time putting all he had into the door but still to no avail. He leaned against the door as pain spread through his shoulders and arm, but he wasn't about to give up. This time he stood up, took a step back and decided to kick the door in, he just didn't realize it would hurt so much. By this point two neighbors had stepped out into the hall to see what all the nice was about, watching as Happy tried his best to get into her apartment. One particularly interested old man just sat there amused as he watched on, finally waiting until Happy had mule kicked the door three times before speaking up.

“You're none to bright are ya?” to which Happy only turned and let out a “huh?”

“That there door, it's steel ya know. Fire Regulations and all. But you keep kicking away. Damned fool.” Happy felt his face flush with embarrassment, and he called on Tony for help.

A half hour later Tony pulled up to the address Happy gave him, and he thought he'd been there before.  He went in and climbed the stairs realizing that he had in fact been there, to see an employee about her choice of romantic interest. “Do you want to tell me what this is about Happy?” The bodyguard held up a photograph as he explained.

“This is Beth Frederick, she lives here and” Tony had heard enough already so he just stopped Happy there.

“Yes I know who lives here, I've came to see her once. Why am I here now?” Happy explained that she had not shown up for work, answered her phone nor the door and Tony raised his brows. “ So Pepper sent you to check on her?”

“Yeah, they’re friends too, so she's worried.” Tony just rolled his eyes before he turned around and stuck a pick gun in the lock and squeezed the trigger a few times. Soon he had unlocked the door and Happy was shocked.

“You carry that with you all the time?” Tony stuck it back in his pocket as he began knock and slowly open Beth's door.

“Well, I tend to do stupid things to piss off Pepper and this way I can still get in if she changes the locks.” Once the door had swung open the two men stood and looked at the room in front of them. “Um, I think we better call in the old man, this doesn't look right.”

\--

Steve looked at the clock to see it was only ten, then as he looked at his caller i.d. he groaned. He took a deep breath before he finally slid his finger across the screen.

“How can I help you Tony?” Tony just rolled his eyes as he could hear the annoyance in Steve’s voice.

“I think you may want to come over to your girlfriend's place.” That is all that Tony got out before Steve hung up. In his own apartment just a block and a half away Steve jumped out of bed and slid into a pair of jeans and a snug grey sweatshirt. He slid on his shoes and he ran the whole way to her place.

\--

When he got to her apartment he stood there in the doorway shocked. The room was a mess, furniture overturned, the lamp laid on the floor broken and then there was the blood smeared on the floor. Steve felt his stomach lurch into his throat as he looked around. He saw Tony coming out of the kitchen and he carefully made his way over.

“Have you called the police?” Tony moved past him and shut the door.

“No, I was waiting on you. I know how much she cares about you, so I figured you cared for her too. If you want to handle this, I understand and I'm right here with you.” Steve respected Tony’s attitude towards the situation, they both knew they could handle it ten times faster than the NYPD, those guys had enough to deal with.

“Let's see what we can find then.” Tony saw the undeniable look in Steve’s eyes, he did care for Beth and he was afraid that is why she was targeted. Steve started fixing her furniture and Tony picked up the broken lamp. As he turn the lamp to expose the side turned to the wood floor, it became clear it had been used as a weapon. The question was against whom, Beth or the intruder?

“Cap, this could be how they overtook her.” Steve's eyes made contact with the lamp and the scene played in his head. She had put the arm chair back on their makeshift dance floor when someone came at her from behind, hitting her with the lamp.

“Someone had to have heard something.” Tony nodded as he sat the remains of the lamp in the end table.

“I thought that too. Happy asked all the neighbors surrounding her, but that one was asleep,” he said as he pointed to his right. “That one was at work” this time pointing to his left. “Passed out drunk,” pointing to the apartment upstairs. “Watching a movie with headphones on,” he now pointed down. “And across the hall was with her boyfriend.” Steve knew Beth’s friend Nicki lived across the hall, so he excused himself to go talk to her himself.

\--

Tony had cleaned up the apartment, but found no real clues nor how they got in or out. He knew though first hand that anyone could pick a lock, but locking the door behind themselves? Steve only found out that Nicki had no idea who would want to take Beth. He was beginning to worry that who ever had done this was after him, and he felt guilt creeping in. He had thought the man who wanted to settle down was gone, but when he met Beth he felt drawn to her, perhaps if he had just kept his distance.  He shook his head, those kind of thoughts weren't going to find her, he had to focus.

\--

Beth woke up with the sunlight streaming down on her face and a throbbing pain in her head. She sat up and began looking around, she was in a small room that resembled a television show jail cell. The walls were made of crumbling concrete and the air was thick and musty. She looked down to see she was still in her pajamas, but someone had put her tennis shoes on her feet. The pounding in her head made her nauseous and she was sure she had a concussion, but surely no one was going to take her to the emergency room to get it checked out.  

“Hello. Hey. Is anyone out there?” There was the sound of a door creaking followed by footsteps, and her heart raced. She was scared that someone was coming to hurt her, or worse.

“Here is some ibuprofen and a bottle of water.” A man appeared at the door, and Beth slowly rose to her feet and cautiously walked towards him.

“where am i?” The man looked back in the direction he came from before looking back at her.

“I'm not supposed to talk to you, but you have a nasty bump and I know it's gotta hurt. Please just take this and they will be here later to talk to you. I'm only a guard.” She walked over and he handed her the water and pills, keeping his eyes lowered. Once the objects were out of his hands he turned and left.

“Hey wait, please. No don't leave me in here alone. Wait, no. No please.” the sound of the door slamming followed by silence told her he was gone. She looked at the two pills in her hand, they seemed to be legitimate so she took them and drank. She walked back over and sank down in the bed, noticing that it seemed to be new compared to the room. She looked around more closely and found that the commode and sink in the corner to her right seemed new as well. The only thought that crossed her mind was that someone went through a lot of trouble to create this cell for her, but who?

After a few minutes of contemplation, she turned to see the window. It was set high on the wall, but she climbed on the bed and tried to look out anyway. It was useless though, she could see nothing but sky so she sat back down. The pain was more than she could manage and tears began to blur her vision. She then let her emotions go, too tired to hold them in any longer.

She realized she was angry, mad at Steve. If he hadn’t left, she wouldn't be in this situation. If he had just stayed he could have protected her but no, Natasha had to come get him. Her anger then shifted to Natasha. No doubt she was perfectly capable of handling any situation but she just had to get Steve. Beth slowly shook her head, she had no right to be angry at either of them. The only person she should be angry with was the person who kidnapped her, that is where the blame needed to lay. Beth just let all her emotions focus into that one beam of hate for whom ever took her away from her home. Her body went numb as she stared at the door to her cell, hatred beginning to consume her.

For hours on end, Beth only stared at the door, ignoring the food that had been brought to her and the man who returned with more pills for her pain. She didn't have to tell him the pain was gone, he knew the moment he saw the fire in her eyes. The moon was high in the sky when she heard footsteps again, but this time they were different. She could hear the distinct sound of boots, the weight of the heel followed by the soft thud of the ball of the foot. She waited, her blood boiling in her veins as she waited to see who had done this. As the steps grew near she closed her eyes and focused, she needed a clear head to speak with. The footsteps stopped outside her cell and silence surrounded her. She froze, fear taking over her emotions as the seconds ticked by. She fought her own mind, desperately trying to regain control until a voice greeted her.

“Hello Beth. Are you comfortable?” Her eyes flew open and she stared at the face looking in at her, one she knew all well.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in posting anything. This chapter is a little shorter than usual, but I hope it makes up for the lack of activity. Thank you for staying with me and this journey!

Steve and Tony ended up back at the Avengers Tower, going through all the evidence, which was very little. They confirmed the blood from the floor was Beth's, but that was really the only thing they were able to gather. There were no fingerprints, no strands of hair, nothing that didn't belong to Beth. They even had tried desperately to find how anyone would have gotten Beth out of the apartment, but none of the cameras in a two block radius showed anything suspicious. 

“Either they studied these cameras and got around them, or she never left the building.” As Tony spoke the words, he and Steve both took off towards the door. She had to be still within the walls of that building. 

\--

“Nicki? What the hell are you doing here?” Beth's voice sounded weak, even to her own ears. 

“Oh sweetie, did you think you and I just crossed paths on our own. I'm here doing my job. And actually I need to thank you, because you've made it so easy for me.”  Beth scowled as she stood up and walked closer to the door. 

“You used me? This whole time? I've known you since high school, what the hell job were you doing then?” 

As she approached the door to her cell, she saw a glimpse of regret in her friend's eyes. 

“A job for the greater good, so thank you. And really you turned out to be quite a gold mine. Because of you, I just got a rather hefty promotion. So thank you, really.” Beth watched the emotion leave her once friend’s eyes as the woman quickly turned on her heel and left. The clicks of her shoes desperately trying to drown out Beth's pleads.

“Please, you were my friend. Don't just leave me here. Don't let them hurt me! Nicki! Please don't let them hurt me!” as the door slammed shut Beth pressed her back to the wall and slid to the floor, nothing was making sense to her. 

 

\--

Steve and Tony got to the apartment building and began searching from Beth's door to the basement. It took them twenty minutes to search the basement from front the her back, but as they reached the far wall, Steve felt his hope disappearing.

“Hey Cap. You may want to see this.” Steve rushed over to where Tony was standing, staring blankly at the floor. Even in the dim light of the basement, it only took Steve a split second to see the single drop of blood on the floor. Tony let Steve take a sample, watching as the usually stoic soldier stayed kneeling in front of the tiny speck of DNA. Tony simply rested a hand on Steve's shoulder, letting him know they were no good to Beth sitting still. 

After getting back to Tony’s lab, they sat in silence when they found out the blood wasn't Beth's. It belonged to a mouse that met it's end in a trap that was picked up just an hour before the men searched the area. Again they had nothing to go on. 

After the dead end lead in the basement, Steve scoured over hours of video from the city's cameras. He sat in front of monitors non stop analyzing every possible lead he could. Finally Tony couldn't take it anymore, so he wrote a program to help recognize any vehicle that appeared in the area surrounding Beth's building in the hours they believe she went missing. He watched quietly for a minute as Steve sat frozen in his seat.

“Here, this might make your workload manageable,” Tony stated as he walked over and pulled up the program he'd written. Within minutes it had a list of seven vehicles for Steve to look into, and he didn't waste a minute. 

\--

Night fell as Beth sat at stared at the floor, trying to sort out all her emotions and the information she knew about Nicki. She was hurt, angry and confused, but her mind still couldn't piece together why. She never noticed the guard from earlier that day standing at her door. It wasn't until the loud creak of the small slit opening in the door did she even realize it was night and she hadn't eaten. He pushed a small tray through the slot and then he looked at her, just for a brief moment his eyes caught hers, then he turned and left. Beth didn’t even bother to say anything, she simply went back to staring at the floor. She thought about everything Nicki had said, pouring over every word, every syllable to try to find some clarity. The smell of the food finally reached her, and she slowly walked over to retrieve the tray. She took the tray over to her small cot and looked at the meal carefully. There was a slice of ham, some mashed potatoes, applesauce and a glass of water. Beth noticed that she was only given a spoon to eat with and she sighed as she began to nibble at the now cold food. 

After her meal was finished, Beth returned her tray to the door and she returned to her cot. She laid down, tears slowly sliding down her cheeks as she prayed Steve was looking for her. 

\--

The first two vehicles Steve looked into were dead ends, then three were not able to be located, one belonged to someone in town on business and the last one was a company car. Tony stayed at the tower while Steve went out to search some more. It was still an hour until sunrise, so Steve started looking for three missing cars. He knew he'd need help, an eye in the sky so to speak, so he called Sam for help. 

“Cap, man you should have called me sooner. You know I'm always here to help.” Steve nodded as he and Sam started walking. 

“Thanks Sam. Well, let’s not waste any time.” The two went off and started their investigation. from the sky, Sam found two of the missing cars, ruling them out upon closer inspection.  While Sam worked in the sky, Steve tracked down the business car, finding that it belonged to a local legal company, so he ruled it out before moving on to find the business man from Baltimore. Tony let Steve use his helicopter to track the man down, and soon he too had ruled out that man. There was just one more car to check, and he called Sam to let him know. 

 

The sun was just coming up over the horizon when Sam met back up with Steve at the Avengers tower. Tony was in his lab looking over hologram map of New York, and his expression churned Steve’s stomach. Once he heard the door open, his eyes darted to Steve and he began asking questions.

“Did you find anything? Any ideas on where she is?” Steve could see there was something Tony was needing to say, so instead of dancing around the subject, Steve was direct. 

“No. What have you found? Do you know where she is?” Tony took in a deep breath as he expanded the map, throwing up to the wall so Steve could see it better. 

“Well, I thought I would do what I could to help from here, so I ran a program to help track the cars, and that one van,  through the city cameras as well as satellites. What I did find was the one car you two couldn’t.” Steve’s jaw flexed as he watched the red dot that appeared on the wall, it showed the path that the missing car had taken. Steve and Sam both watched the dot blink all the way to Newark Airport. It disappeared inside a hanger for an hour before emerging in the dead of night, followed by a small cessna. The plane took off and the car drove to a loading pier before plunging into the Hudson. Steve turned to begin asking questions, but Tony was one step ahead of him. 

“I already accessed the manifold for the flight that left just after the car, it was headed to Bratislava in Slovakia. We know Hydra in strong in that part of Europe,” he hated even saying it, but he did anyway “especially their human testing division.” Steve’s blood ran cold as he thought of Beth being tested on. He slammed his fist down on the table before closing his eyes and giving his demand. 

“Get the team together. We’re going to Slovakia.”

\--

Beth figured it was somewhere close to 9 a.m. when she woke up, and she decided that she was not going to let anyone use her or hurt her. She would remain strong and even if they tortured her, they'd get no useful information. She sat and waited, still going through her memories, trying to figure out why Nicki would have done this. Afterall, she didn’t work for Stark industries until she graduated college, and she’d only just met the man who was Captain America. Was it because of her grandfather? Could he really be who Nicki was after. If that was the case, then why kidnap her? Afterall, her grandfather was in his nineties, there was no way he’d be able to track down Beth. Maybe they planned on using her as leverage to get him to talk, but about what? Then it hit her, Project:Rebirth. She was sure her grandfather knew nothing as to how it was done, or what was in the serum. Perhaps she was wrong, she was sitting in cell being held captive. She now felt the butterflies in her stomach as she worried about what they would do to him. She paced the floor and tried to swallow down the lump in her throat, praying that she got to see her father one more time, alive. 


	11. Chapter 11

Steve and the team landed in Slovakia and immediately got to work making their way to a suspected Hydra facility. Steve led Sam and Clint up the south east side to the building while Tony, Natasha, Wanda and Vision came in from the north. They were all on edge, especially Wanda who knew what went on inside these sort of facilities. 

“Hey Cap, we’ve been keeping an eye on these windows, but honestly it just looks like a crude hospital inside.” Clint and Sam had just been thinking the same thing as they looked to Steve.

“That’s how it looks to us too, but this is the location we retrieved from Hydra’s files. It’s probably a front to keep suspicions away. We will move in on my mark. Everyone stay focused.” The team readied themselves and soon moved in. They began on the ground floor, Tony and his team going up and checking the three floors above them, and Steve’s team checking the ground floor and basement.

Tony and Wanda had gone to the third floor while Natasha and Vision went through the second floor, but it didn't take long for them to find out there was more than met the eye inside the building. As Tony was walking down the hall he had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, so he spoke into his com piece. 

“Anyone else feel like we walked into a hornet's nest?” Everyone seemed to hum in agreement, except for Wanda who gave her opinion.

“This is a trap. We should leave now.” Everyone but Steve agreed, he bit his lip in frustration as he kept searching. 

“You all can go if you want, but I'm finishing this mission and bringing Beth home.” Everyone was silent for a moment, but Sam soon spoke up. 

“I’m here with you Cap. Let’s find her.” They kept moving through the halls, searching each room one by one, Steve taking the north hall, and Sam the south hall. 

“Romanoff, you, witchy and Vision go get the plane ready. I’ll go help Steve and Sam finish searching. Clint, where do you stand?” Clint who had already resumed searching keyed up and let Tony know he was still standing with Steve. Sam was the first to come to a set of stairs, so he descended them slowly, not knowing what to expect. 

“Hey Cap, I’m headed down the south stairwell.” Steve looked down the hall at the three last rooms he had to search. 

“I’ll be down in a minute, I have a few more rooms to look into.” Tony was then beside him, desperate to get out of the eerily silent building. 

“You go on down Cap, I’ll check these rooms.”  Steve nodded to Tony, happy to know he would stand by his side. As Steve got to the landing midway down the flight of stairs separating him and Sam, he heard it. It sounded like a Xavier gunshot rang out, filling the halls and corridors with sound. Steve stopped for a brief moment to assess where the sound had originated from before rushing down to the basement. He ran down the hall, looking into the rooms as he passed them until he heard a voice key up. 

“It's a trap!” Steve’s blood ran cold as he heard Sam’s voice gurgling in his ear. He kept moving, Clint and Tony following behind looking for their teammate. Steve was the first to spot him, his feet skidding on the floor as he turned to run down a side hall. Sam was laying back against a wall not moving, but Steve saw no blood. 

“Get away. She shot me with something  and I can't move. Get out of here.” Steve had slowed down, but he kept moving forward until he spotted motion out of his peripheral vision. He froze and slowly turned seeing a woman fleeing towards a hall. He looked over to Sam and his heart sank as he saw the man holding his side. Tony quickly passed Steve, telling him to help Sam as he flew after the woman. Sam’s eyes kept scanning around the room as Steve and Clint tried to assess the damage to Sam, but they saw nothing. Steve carefully picked him up and began ascending the stairs, but soon it was evident that the residents of the hospital were very aware of who was inside. 

\---

Beth had done all she could to keep busy, but as she finished her squats her heart began to race. The familiar sound of a door opening had her on edge, wondering who it was. The voice that used to make her relaxed cut through the silence and It now filled Beth with rage. 

“Don't forget to keep your back straight honey. I mean we all know you’re wanting to look good for that handsome Captain America, if you see him againil.” Beth’s stomach tied in a knot hearing her kidnapper still trying to act like her best friend. Beth didn't dare look to the small window in the door, instead she let her anger fuel her as she got on the floor and began doing push ups. 

“I know you will collapse after about twenty of those, I'm your best friend remember.” Beth couldn't take it anymore, she jumped to her feet and turned to face the door, her adrenaline pumping through her veins.

“You are not my best friend. You're some poser who used me to get to an old man. How dare you even speak to me anymore.” Beth stopped her yelling as Nicki opened the door and came in the small cell. Beth noticed that Nicki had clothes draped over her arm as she  walked closer. 

“Doesn't change the fact that I know everything about you. So why don't you be a dear and put these on. You don't want to head out in those dirty pajamas do you?” Beth stood there, a fire raging inside her. 

“Why would I go with you? You could be leading me to the firing squad. I think I'll take my chances away from you.” Nicki just laughed as she laid out the floral dress and peep toes boot on the cot that had been Beth bed. 

“Get dressed or I'll bring the firing squad in here.” Her tone was dead, no emotion and Beth suddenly felt scared. Then as she spoke again, it was back to the voice Beth was used to. “Besides, don't you want to see your grandfather?” With that Nicki turned and left. 

Beth felt her heart racing as she thought about what they would do to her grandfather, and she knew she had to see him one last time. She shed the clothes she had been wearing before trying to clean up at the small sink in the corner of the room. Once she was as clean as she could get, she slid into the dress that reached to just above her knees. She then put on the boots and sat on the edge of the cot, waiting. In the time she waited, all it did was serve for her mind to wander, letting her worries grow wild. 

\--

Wanda was just about to head down to the main floor of the building when a man stepped out in front of her. She froze and watched him, ready to use her powers if it got to that, but his eyes were pleading with her, and suddenly they seemed familiar. She stepped forward and touched his arm tentatively, and with cat like reflexes he grabbed her wrist. Her mind was flooded with memories and images from this man, and now she knew who he was, he'd been in the same facility as she and her brother. They had done horrible experiments on him and Hydra wanted him and the other “patients” to eliminate as many Avengers as possible. She tried to pull away, but his grip was too tight and she was overwhelmed with the feeling of pain and sorrow, followed by comfort. The man then let go of her arm and pushed her towards the steps. She could see in his eyes that he wanted to help, so she ran as he and a few others fought back the drones of Hydra’s puppets. She made her way to the rendezvous point, but she let the others know what was happening. 

“You men need out of there now. Those peoples priorities is to kill us, all of us. We have some allies in there but even they are greatly outnumbered.” By the time she was heard, Steve and Clint were clearing out a path as they slowly carried Sam out. 

Tony flew through the stairwell that he'd seen the woman run into, and as he heard Wanda’s message he was already facing an angry mob of Hydra’s made mutants. He could see something forgery headed his way and he quickly swerved. He knew then it was wiser to run than to stay and fight. He turned to the outside wall and blasted a hole in it before looking back to mass of people headed his way. “I hate to leave so soon, but I'd also hate to die in Slovakia so bye.” With that he flew out of the hole he'd created all while chaos was happening behind him. He'd only made it to the ground floor therefore the “patients” found it easy to follow him out as he made his escape. He felt a jolt on his hip and within seconds the power in his suit was dropping rapidly. He arched towards the plane and prayed he'd get close enough to make it. 

\-- 

The clicking of heels on floor matched the beating of Beth's heart, quick and steady. She took in a deep breath and tried to calm her nerves, but as her mind raced so did her heartbeat. She shook off her worries and tried to formulate an escape plan, but she knew that was going to be hard without knowing her surroundings. As the door began to creak open she found herself sitting on the edge of the cot ready to run. Nicki opened the door and walked in, a sick smile on her face once she saw Beth. 

“I'm happy you decided to change, I always liked that dress on you.” Beth swallowed a lump down before she stood up. 

“Let's just do this Nicki.” As Beth took a small step forward a man came into the room behind Nicki and Beth stepped back again. 

“Oh don't worry, he's just an insurance policy making sure you don't try to run and your grandfather cooperates.” Beth furrowed her brows as Nicki turned on her heels and began to make be down the hall. The man waited for Beth to walk past him and he followed behind her closely. The three of them came to an elevator and Beth grew nervous, knowing anything could happen in the small confined space. After several seconds the doors opened and Beth began to take note of all her surroundings. It had been obvious that she was on a sub-terrain floor so she hoped they went up. The door opened and they stepped into the small space together and Beth felt her fear growing. Her eyes scanned the buttons on the usual looking elevator wall and found that there were at least two floors below their current one and 37 above them. When Nicki pressed the top floor button, Beth closed her eyes and fought the increasing anxiety inside her. The motion of the elevator tickled her stomach and made Beth nauseous as they moved towards the top of the building. 

There was a slight pause before the doors opened in the top floor that served to fuel Beth’s flight response. She didn't know how they would have gotten her grandfather here and that made her mind rationalize that they were bringing her to a place where they could record a video using her as leverage against the 92 year old man. They exited the tiny vessel and Beth followed Nicki as they traveled down the hallway. As they walked Beth noted the city skyline out the window and knew immediately they were just across the Hudson River in New Jersey. She could make out Battery Park along the shore across the way and her stomach flipped. All this time and she had been so close to home, to her grandfather, to Steve. She found her feet growing heavy as she thought about Steve and the possibility of never seeing him again. She had come to accept the fact that it wouldn't be long until she was saying her final goodbye to her grandfather, he had given her quite the wake up just a year earlier when he suffered a minor stroke, but Steve was someone she was not ready to lose. She didn't even realize she had stopped dead in her tracks until the man with Nicki pushed her forward. 

“Keep moving” was all that he said with his thick accent that Beth could only guess was from Eastern Europe. She looked up to find Nicki and saw her heading to a stairway. The blond turned and waited before opening the door and ascending the steps toward the roof. Beth’s stomach dropped as she took the first steps and she began to think they were just going to kill her. As she walked through the door and out onto the gravel covered roof she could feel herself shaking with fear, but she forced the lump in her throat down refusing to vomit. Nicki walked to the center of the roof where a single chair was located then she turned and motioned for Beth to sit. Her back was to the door they had came from and she tried to focus on the city skyline in front of her as Nicki and the man spoke in what she assumed was Russian. She kept thinking to herself that she could run, but she had nowhere to go, she'd surely die hitting pavement below. Would that be better than them killing her? She shook the thought away as she tried to come up with some sort of escape plan. Her mind was racing as she looked around at the roof and other buildings surrounding them. As she scanned the building to their left something whizzed by her right ear and she jumped and swatted at the air. Before she could looked to see where the bug had gone, Nicki grabbed her by the hair and shoved a pistol into her ribs. 

“*Pokazat' sebe soldata” Nicki yelled as Beth tried to pull away. “You try to get away and that precious old man you call grandpa is dead.” Beth froze as she tried to understand what was happening. She turned slightly to see the large man dead on the ground in a pool of blood. She made the connection that it was no bee buzzing past her ear, but a bullet that killed the man laying behind her. 

“*Vykhodi ili riskovat' svoyey zhizn'yu.” Nicki tried to sound calm but Beth could hear the anxiety in her voice. There was nothing but silence for a moment, then the sound of aggravated gravel came from their left. Nicki pulled Beth's hair back hard causing her head to jerk back as the cold metal of the pistol gouged into her neck. 

“* Vy ne byli by, chto by prosto zakonchit' svoyu sobstvennuyu zhizn.” Beth jerked to see where the voice had come from, and just from the corner of her eye she saw him, and for a brief moment her heart stopped. Why on earth was he there? She was supposed to be seeing her grandfather, not James Barnes.

\-----

*pokazat' sebe soldata = Show yourself Soldier

*Vykhodi ili riskovat' svoyey zhizn'yu = come out or risk her life

* Vy ne byli by, chto by prosto zakonchit' svoyu sobstvennuyu zhizn= You wouldn’t, that would just end your own life


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the massive delays, but I'm feeling more inspired now

Tony found himself crashing through the trees at an alarming rate but he tried to remain focused on the goal of his fall. Soon the heavy suit he wore hit the ground and tore through the top layer of earth as he skidded towards Clint who stood waiting at the back of the plane. Tony groaned as the suit finally came to a stop just a few inches shy of the back hatch of the plane, happy to shed his protection off so he could assess the damage done to it. He asked Clint about Sam as the plane climbed into the air, thinking that they both had been hit by the same thing.   
“How's the fly boy doing? Any idea what hit him?” Clint shook his head as he and Tony cleared the hatch door, letting it seal them in the plane as it took off away from the army of experiments following them. “If was the same thing that hit my suit I'd say he’ll be down for a while.”  
The two made their way into the belly of the plane, seeing Steve sitting next to Natasha whispering between themselves.   
“Come on, you know it’s not polite to keep secrets.” Tony said as he came over and sat down across the from them. Natasha rolled her eyes as she kept talking to Steve.   
“She wasn’t here, so now we go back to the beginning and see what we missed.”

\--------  
Beth stood in shock as Nicki pulled her hair harder, craning her neck back as the cold steel of a barrel now pressed into her jaw.   
“If you want her to live, you come with me.” Beth's eyes met Bucky’s, and he could see her pleading with him.   
“If you want to live you'd let her go.” Nicki laughed as she cocked the gun and pressed it harder into Beth's skin.   
“This isn't a game anymore. Stop resisting what you are, we both know you can't control it. It's wormed it's way deep within your brain and it can never leave.” Beth's hands had seized Nicki’s arms, crying and pleading quietly as she pulled at the woman's hold on her. “Face it, I can turn you back into a killing machine this instant, then stand back and watch you squeeze the life from her, so just give in to me.” He seemed to consider what Nicki had said, and he began to lower his weapon to the ground. Beth felt Nicki’s grip falter and she took the opportunity to fight.  
To Bucky, time slowed as he watched Beth struggle against Nicki. Beth pulled Nicki’s arms down and was able to grab her gun. The two pulled at the gun, but Nicki had the advantage of the angle. She let go of Beth’s hair, but neither moved from their strongholds on the gravel beneath their feet as they struggled. Bucky pulled his gun up, but was afraid to shoot Beth as she fought with the other woman. Their struggle intensified and soon the sound of a gunshot filled the air.

  
\-----  
Steve had made his way to Sam, happy to hear his friend was slowly regaining feeling in his fingers. They would be landing at the compound within minutes but to Steve the whole flight home had felt like days. As they touched down everyone filed off the plane, Steve and Clint helping unload Sam’s gurney. Steve remained quiet as he kept going over and over every detail in his mind. He kept having to swallow to keep the bile out of his throat, praying that Beth wasn't still trapped in the car at the bottom of the river.   
“She's alive man, you have to know that.” Sam's voice snapped him out of his trance and he was happy to see his buddy looking a little better.   
“I'm trying my best to believe that.” Just as the were landing, Maria walked out of the compound and looked at the men whom seemed defeated.   
“You guys might want to come see this. We have eyes on the winter soldier. And Cap we think he's with Beth.”   
At that moment Steve took off in a sprint into the compound and once inside he ran towards the briefing room where he saw a screen, not only was Beth there, but the closeup showed a man dead at her feet and her best friend there holding a gun to her. He could see an exchange between Nicki and Bucky and he wished he could hear what was going on.

Soon he was surrounded by his friends and they were watching in anticipation with him. They watched as Nicki and Beth began to struggle, and then when both women fell they all prayed.   
“Where is this? Find out and get me there now.”

\--  
Bucky had his gun trained on Nicki as he moved closer, but he knew he only had moments before Hydra agents rushed the roof. He moved closer to Beth, finally breathing a sigh of relief as he saw her eyes opening. Blood was beginning to pool around Nicki, and he reached down and pulled Beth up.

“We have to go now.” Beth could only nod as she looked at him, now daring to let her eyes wander to the woman laying next to her. As Bucky took off, she struggled to keep up, but soon the adrenaline kicked in and she found it easy to sprint across the roof. As he got near the edge she realized they would have to jump and she began to slow down. They could hear the roof door swinging open and before she could protest, Bucky grabbed her hand and pulled her close. His metal armsnaked around her waist, pinning her body against his as he leapt across to the neighboring building. As their feet hit the gravel, she slid slightly but he kept her upright as his feet never stopped. He finally let her go as he ripped the roof door off the hinges, once again taking her hand as he led her down the stairs. They had made it to the second floor when shouting could be heard coming from the main floor, so Bucky make a split second decision to leave the stairwell and head out into the floor. He began looking for a way out, but soon it was clear the only way down was either by elevator or stairs, so he improvised. He pulled Beth into an office, locking the door behind them before pushing a desk in front of it. The man sitting behind the desk didn't even have a chance to say anything as Bucky walked over and punched the glass, sending shards of glass out over the road. He then looked at Beth, brows raised.

“Do you still trust me?” She rushed to his side, holding on tight to his neck as his arm snaked around her waist again. He jumped out the window and landed lightly, but Beth wasn't used to jumping out windows or off buildings and she felt her ankle turn. She yelled as she stood up and Bucky knew now he had to figure out a way to get her away quickly. Just as he looked, a motorcycle came barreling down the road and he took the opportunity to grasp the handlebar, knocking the driver off while turning it around. Beth didn't hesitate to climb on behind him, especially hearing glass breaking above them. He wove his way between traffic and he easily escaped the two black cars that began to follow them. He kept going, making his way out of the city and up the north road. Finally after an hour he pulled into a gas station and told Beth to call Steve.

\----  
Steve had made his way to the building where Beth had been kept, and most of the team cleared it out of any remaining Hydra members. Maria let him know before even arriving that Beth had left, but he felt the best way to find her was to stay on the trail. He saw the damage to the neighboring building, but after that the trail was cold. Tony and Vision took to the sky, but neither could see any evidence of where she and Bucky would have gone.

“Steve, you're getting a call in your cell. I'm patching it through.” He shook his head, groaning slightly.

“No. Don't I'm too busy let someone else answer.” He then heard a click from where the call was patched in and he reluctantly answered.

“This better be good.” Even though he sounded annoyed, Beth nearly cried hearing him.

“Isn't it always good when I call.” He smiled as he listened to her, she was alright. 


	13. Chapter 13

Beth and Bucky made their way across the street to a cheap motel, Bucky paying cash for a room where he and Beth would hold up while waiting on Steve. They walked in and she looked around, wanting desperately to shower but she really didn't have any extra clothes.

“I suppose there is nothing in that bag to fit me.” He smirked as he picked up his duffle bag. He opened it and pulled it a faded black t shirt, but that was all he had to offer her.

“Sorry. This is all I have.” He stood and made his way to the door, stopping to look at her as he stood by the door. “I have to go hide the bike, but I will only be gone fifteen minutes tops. Lock this door and don't open it for anyone. If someone comes to this door other than me, take that bag and run. I will come find you.”

Bucky left and Beth decided to take a long shower, ridding herself of any evidence of what had happened. She then got out and toweled off before sliding Bucky's shirt on. She washed her clothes in the sink, hanging them over the shower curtain rod before realizing Bucky hadn't returned. She walked over to the window, glancing out and seeing red and blue flashing lights across the street. Panic stricken, she went back and began sliding the still damp dress on praying Bucky was alright. She rearranged his shirt over her dress, slid into her shoes and then slung his bag over her shoulder. She stepped out the door and began walking down towards the end of the building, but as she made it to where the building ended, she was met by a solid mass of man. His arms threw around her, a massive hand covering her mouth.

\--  
Steve assured the team no one needed to go with him to pick up Beth, but Tony and Nat decided maybe it would be wise to have Vision and Rodney trail him just in case this was a set up. He changed back to his street clothes before climbing on his bike, headed north towards where Beth said she was.

The rest of the team were cleaning up the mess left behind by Hydra, some blaming Bucky for the entire deal. They continued to update Steve and he had heard enough as Tony started again with an update.

“Well Cap, we got lucky. You're buddy only managed to scare the hell of the bank next door, no one was killed.” Steve could feel his anger rising all evening and this was the final straw.

“He's not going to kill just for the fun of it. Damn it Tony he was brainwashed and used as a weapon. No different than our Assassins.” The coms went silent and Steve immediately felt guilt knowing Nat was listening. He wanted to apologize but he was still angry. “I'm going radio silent. Sorry.” With that he turned off his communicator and concentrated on his task.

He drove for an hour on the back roads, and when he saw the police lights, his heart jumped to his throat. He slowed down and pulled over into the gas station. He walked over to one of the officers and spoke to him quietly. Steve found out that the attendant had been murdered and he felt like his night was about spiral out of control. He was so close to having Beth back and safe, but now he was scared that it wasn’t going to happen. He began looking around for any evidence that would tell him where Beth was going, but when he spotted the old relic of a payphone on the south side of the building, he made his way over to it. As he got to the phone he closed his eyes thinking that she’d been standing here only an hour before, now he just had to figure out where she went after. He looked across the street and something caught his eye. The Dew Drop Inn. He smirked as he sprinted across the street to find out who had recently checked in.

There were cops everywhere, mostly checking on occupants to see if anyone had seen what happened at the gas station, and Steve found it hard to get the night manager to cooperate.u

“Hey, can you just look at this picture and tell me if you’ve seen her. Please.” The man glanced at Steve’s phone and shook his head.

“She don’t look familiar to me.” Steve looked around before shoving a hand in his pocket and pulling out a large bill.

“How about now?” The man squinted now as he took a longer look at the picture.

“Eh maybe. She sorta looks like the girl who was with some guy who paid cash. He rented a room for a few hours, I figured she was some escort, although she didn't look like no escort I get in here.” Steve wanted to deck they guy, but with the police all over, he raised his brows as he looked around.

“What room did you give them?” The guy turned and looked at the cops out the window.

“He asked to be far away from everyone and wanted on the first floor, so I gave him room 127, it's at the end down there by the stairs.” Steve took off down the sidewalk, his heartbeat thumping loud in his ears and he thought about seeing Beth again. 


	14. Chapter 14

Steve stood at the door reading 127 and he knocked, holding his breath as he listened for any sounds coming from inside. As the seconds ticked by Steve found his stomach growing tighter as he feared what he'd find on the other side of the door. He noticed movement from his left and turned to see an officer sauntering his way. Steve knocked again, a little louder as he tried to remain calm. After all, there was a murder where Beth had called him from, but Bucky wouldn't kill an innocent man, would he? Soon the officer was by his side and Steve casually looked over.

“We didn’t get an answer either. Someone you know?” Steve looked at the officer, not sure how much he should say.

“I’m looking for a friend of mine.” The cop eyed him up before looking at the door. He then turned to leave, speaking over his shoulder.

“Who ever it was left, but I hope you find your friend.” He groaned as he leaned against the door but soon shuffling from the wooded area outside the hotel caught his attention and he wondered who was hiding from the police. He scanned the area for a second and he felt his heart racing, was Beth in trouble? Did whomever murdered the gas station attendant have her? Where the hell was Bucky? All these thought filled his mind and he finally made up his mind as he looked around for the police.

Once he saw an opportunity, Steve moved to the woods and began stealthily moving through the overgrown vegetation. He pushed his way through some branches, then he noticed a path where someone else had done the same. He watched his steps, moving as swift as he could without making too much noise. He stopped as he heard footsteps and he took another tentative step forward. A twig broke behind he and he turned quickly, grabbing a large body and placing him in a choke hold.

“It's me. I'm going to take you to Beth.” Steve let out a sigh of relief as he let Bucky go.

“She’s not at the motel.” Bucky nodded as he motioned for Steve to follow him.

“I know. I went back to get her after Hydra killed the man across the street. She was already ready to run so I moved her somewhere safer.” Steve hated that she was wrapped up in this, but at least he knew Bucky was looking out for her.   
  
“How did you find her? We ended up looking for her in Slovakia.” Bucky shook his head as he walked faster.

“It's just a few clicks ahead, I'll explain when you and her are together.” Steve followed Bucky, a lump in his thrust as he waited to see Beth again. There was a small building ahead and Steve could see a dim light on inside. The closer he approached the more he realized it wasn't much of a building, more of an old drying hut left over from an era long gone. Once next to the hut, Bucky let Steve go in first and the moment he stepped inside Beth turned and ran into his arms. She began sobbing as she held onto Steve, finally able to believe she was going to be alright. Everything seemed to catch up to her and Steve held onto her, trying to keep himself together as he let her cry.

After a few minutes her tears subsided and she slowly pulled away, using the sleeve on Bucky’s shirt she had on to wipe her face. She looked at Steve briefly, then she pressed her lips to his. When she pulled away she looked around and noticed they were alone.

“Where is James?” Steve turned around and saw that his friend hadn't followed him inside and soon Bucky peered in the door.

“I was giving you two a moment.” He leaned against the door frame, but the building moaned and creaked under his weight and he stood up, looked to Steve then back to the building. The all chuckled for a moment then Bucky began to speak, “I didn't find her, Hydra found me and lured me out with her. Beth, I knew your grandmother.” She nodded as she spoke now, wanting to tell him what she knew.

“I know, she was your sister's best friend. My grandfather worked on Project Rebirth, so I thought maybe that's why they took me.” Steve pulled her closer to his chest.

“No, Beth. They took you to lure out your grandfather. They took you to lure out me.” She scowled as did Steve as they looked to Bucky, then Beth walked over as she took in what he just said.

“How? I mean I know how but you were under Hydra control weren't you?” He nodded but he lowered his eyes as he thought about that mission.

“It was one of my first missions, an assassination. I was pretty scrambled but once the mission was complete, I saw a familiar face. I followed her and soon she was turning down a side road that was empty so I got closer. The more I watched her the more I knew she was someone special. Finally she went inside a small hotel and I followed her up to her room. I knocked and as soon as she answered she fainted. I picked her up and laid her in the bed, then I slowly woke her up and next I knew she called me James, and then I started questioning her. As she spoke i slowly remembered. I spent the rest of that evening and all the following day with her, although we barely left the bed.” Beth held her hand up and shook her head as Bucky had a reminiscent smile on his lips.

“I think I get the point of what happened.” He looked at Beth and nodded in agreement. He motioned for her and Steve to follow him and he started talking again.

“Look Steve, you go get your bike and meet Beth and I just about a mile up the road. I have a place upstate in the forest, where I will go to hopefully keeping Hydra away from all of you.” Beth looked to Steve, their eyes locking at he thought about what Bucky said. Steve looked to Bucky and nodded. He looked back to Beth, reaching up and letting his fingers brush her jaw.

“I'll see you soon,” he then leaned down and kissed her sweetly before turning and walking back to where he'd left his bike. James and Beth watched as Steve walked away and then he put a hand on her shoulder.

“Let's go, we have some ground to cover.” They both took off and for a while their hike was silent. Then Beth spoke up.

“So, if you're my grandfather and I'm dating Steve, that means I'm dating my grandfather's best friend. That sounds so wrong.” James chuckled as he looked over to her, now noticing the tiny differences from her grandmother. He smiled though, thinking that the beating and punishment he'd taken for coming back late from his mission was worth the gift he'd given his dear Elizabeth.

Somewhere flying overhead Rodney and Vision reported back to Tony all that they had seen. He was relieved to hear Beth was alright, but he feared that the Winter Soldier was capable of, and that maybe his alliance was still sinister. 


End file.
